He further says he is excited by the semi-annual colloquium that brings various speakers of note to address issues and bring forth solutions for the province to go forward.

"The gaps must be closed between society and tertiary institutions. University students do great research with great topics but it is only for their academic progress and not for implementation.  

"I will like to challenge universities to play a bigger role in terms of research done on the current societal problems the nation is facing, including issues such as the rape culture, crime or gender-based violence," Makgoe said. 

He said the universities must work hand in hand with society to help eradicate these problems. "Research must not only be for the sake of academics.

"South Africa is in its 25th year of democracy, we must stop playing the blame card. Transcend from the legacy that was left by apartheid and conquer [the future]," Makgoe said.

"The South African government gives the biggest budget for education of all African countries, however, other African countries' scholars seem to be academically better equipped than South Africans. We need to look deeper into the type of curriculum our country teaches and incorporate our curriculum with entrepreneurial learning," he concluded.

OFM News/Marvin Ntsane