College of Business and Economics | Annual Report 2021 33 Research and Innovation OVERVIEW Under the leadership of Prof Kelvin Joseph Bwalya, the Research, Innovation and Internationalisation Unit of the College aims to peddle both research excellence and global excellence and stature. The Unit also aims to increase both the research quantity and quality as knowledge generated to positively impact on society. The College of Business and Economics has over the years grown in stature and has well-positioned itself to effectively contribute to solving societal problems. Despite the lockdown imposed in 2020/21, the productivity levels of the researchers in the College did not experience any downward trend and in fact improved. This has been explained by the increased time the researchers had at their disposal to further focus on their research. Further, the growth in collective excellence and stature and correspondingly higher research productivity is a result of careful strategic planning and mapping. The positive research development trajectory is sustained by the expectation for universal contribution in knowledge production for each of the academe. Prof Kelvin Bwalya Vice-Dean: Reasearch, Innovation and Internationalisation College of Business and Economics In cementing the intellectual footprint of the College, internationalisation efforts were pursued with vigour and enthusiasm. The College also saw a shift towards developing solid engagements and relationships with College alumni and visiting scholars. As a result, three new partnership agreements were signed with universities in France, Germany, Canada and the USA. A total of 294 (+8% year-on-year) visiting academics were recruited, positively contributing to the increase of the College’s cadre of researchers and collaborators. Further, the number of postdoctoral researchers increased to 62 (+41%). The 2021 research outputs increased by a whopping +38% compared to that of 2020, reaching the 600 ROU mark. With a strategy to move away from conferences, research quality has significantly improved with approximately 95% of journal articles appearing in high-impact journals. There is also a significant increase in knowledge production, given the increased research capacity and capability. Fourty academics have attained their doctoral degrees in 2021 and a total of 38 academics are now NRF-rated. In 2021, the College conferred a total of 1 380 postgraduate qualifications. In total, 331 were postgraduate diplomas, 815 honours qualifications, 193 master’s degrees (16%), and 41 doctorates. All in all, there has been an increase in the different qualifications conferred in 2021 as compared to 2020. RESEARCH CAPACITY AND EXCELLENCE RESEARCH OUTPUTS The CBE submitted over 995 individual research output publications translating into over 613 ROUs. This is a significant increase given that in 2020, only 686 publications were realised. 2021 has seen an increase in the number of journal articles (81%), books and book chapters (11%) as compared to The College of Business and Economics has over the years grown in stature and has well-positioned itself to effectively contribute to solving societal challenges
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