During the 2022 IASIA annual conference, which took place in July in Rabat, Morocco, Professor Natasja Holtzhausen, a Professor in the School of Public Administration (SPMA), was elected as one of five board members representing Africa in the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA).

IASIA is an entity of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS), which focuses on public administration, management, education and training. It is a global association comprising 161 members from 66 countries that represent seven regions across the world. Members may represent any academic institution or public organisation responsible for practising public administration.

Prof Holtzhausen believes in the Association’s mission, which is to strengthen administrative capacity around the world by advancing scholarship in public administration and providing a platform through which cutting-edge research on governance issues may be shared. IASIA not only offers its members the opportunity to participate in annual events such as conferences, but through its ten working groups, it establishes global networks for collaboration and cross-country research opportunities. Membership includes subscription to the International Review of Administrative Sciences, a renowned journal in the discipline.

IASIA strives to influence the global governance agenda through its academic engagements and the production of quality scholarship, research articles and professional training programmes. It also offers accreditation in line with the standards of best practices in public administration and the SPMA is currently undergoing an accreditation process with IASA for its master’s degree in Public Administration. Furthermore, the Association offers emerging researchers an opportunity to learn from established researchers and Prof Holtzhausen is looking forward to "mentoring young academics and building the capacity of the continent to address its public policy challenges and harness the continent’s potential for development success". One of its strengths is the strong ‘voices from the collective South’ that it offers.

As a board member Prof Holtzhausen, representing South Africa and the continent, will play a key role in supporting IASIA’s goal of repositioning itself to be considered indispensable to the global public administration discourse. She plans to continue advocating for social justice through her research activities and using her membership to foster strategic partnerships that will bring positive change and efficiency in the public administration field.

She said: "I am excited about my election to the IASIA board and will use my membership to enhance the dissemination of specifically southern-voiced research to influence the global discourse. I want to build networks for the betterment of society, enable our students to share their work and leverage the wealth of knowledge held by the collective IASIA board to the benefit of Africa and other public administration scholars and practitioners."