Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) has provided equipment to the Medical Plant Biology Laboratory at Stellenbosch University, which continues its educational and research activities in South Africa.
TİKA provided equipment support to the Medical Plant Biology Laboratory at Stellenbosch University in South Africa, ranked among the world’s top 200 universities in plant and animal sciences.
Through this project, a centrifuge machine, water purification system, spectrophotometer, plant growth chamber and lyophilizer were provided to support the cultivation of plants under controlled conditions, DNA analysis and the preservation of plants and extracts as required.
South Africa is home to 9,000 endemic plant species
South Africa hosts approximately 9,000 plant species, the majority of which are endemic. These plants, integral to the development of traditional medicine, have been used by local communities for medicinal purposes over centuries.
However, during the apartheid era the Witchcraft Suppression Act 3 of 1957 restricted this usage. Following the repeal of this law in 1994, academic research surged, allowing many native plants to be widely adopted in medicine and cosmetics.
Stellenbosch University is now dedicated to integrating traditional knowledge into academic research. To support this, TİKA provided the university with equipment to study the reactions of local plants to different production conditions, determine optimal cultivation and storage methods and conduct DNA-level analyses.
Handover ceremony organized
The handover ceremony was attended by Yonca Sunel, Consul General of the Republic of Türkiye in Cape Town; Abdulkadir Abukan, TİKA’s Coordinator in Pretoria; Vim de Villiers, Rector of Stellenbosch University; Sibusiso Moyo, Vice Rector; as well as academics and students.
During the ceremony, Rector de Villiers expressed gratitude to TİKA for its contributions. Vice Rector Moyo emphasized the significance of international cooperation in enhancing the university’s research capacity and provided information about the partnerships with universities in Türkiye.
Consul General Sunel noted that this program marked her first official visit since her appointment and expressed her pleasure in collaborating with the esteemed institutions of South Africa.
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