A cow cannot tell a farmer that she’s becoming lame, ready to breed or showing the first signs of illness. But bold new technology can detect subtle changes in her movement and behaviour – sometimes before a farmer sees them.

Scale that across South Africa’s cattle industry and the possibilities are significant: healthier animals, earlier disease detection, better breeding and biosecurity, and smarter use of resources such as water, feed and grazing.

But there is another calculation to make: who gets the technology?

South Africa’s livestock industry spans large, technologically advanced commercial operations and smallholder and emerging farmers with far fewer resources. Precision technology could benefit both – or become another advantage available mainly to those with the money and infrastructure to afford it.

That tension runs through the research of Nelson Mandela University agricultural scientist Anton Gresse, whose work stretches from the data generated by an individual dairy cow to the ecological condition of entire Karoo landscapes.

“Both are true, and I think we need to be honest about that rather than choosing one narrative,” says Gresse, a lecturer in Agricultural Management at the University’s George Campus.

“In principle, these technologies can benefit any farmer, because the underlying problems they solve – knowing an individual animal’s fertility status, health or location – matter just as much to a smallholder with twenty cattle as to a commercial operation with two thousand.”

In practice, implementation costs, data integration and poor rural connectivity remain significant barriers.

“If we are not deliberate about how this technology is rolled out, there is a genuine risk that it becomes another advantage that accrues mainly to those who already have capital and infrastructure, widening rather than narrowing the gap between our commercial and emerging sectors,” Gresse says.

From farm boy to big data

Gresse’s fascination with cattle began well before he knew the term “precision livestock farming”.

Born and raised in Pretoria, he comes from a family involved in beef and dairy farming for generations. As a child, he spent every spare moment he could on the farms, “watching, helping, and asking questions”.

“Growing up around beef and dairy cattle, you learn very quickly that every animal is an individual, with its own history, temperament, and needs,” he says.

He completed his BSc and MSc in Animal Science at the University of Pretoria, with his master’s focused on automated dairy systems. It was there that he spotted something that has driven much of his research since: automated systems were collecting enormous amounts of information about individual cows, but much of it was not being used to its full potential.

“That gap, between the data being captured and the decisions actually being made on farm, is what has driven my research ever since.”

Two of Gresse’s journal articles now approach that challenge from different ends of the cattle industry.

His 2025 study, Exploring heifer fertility, sire selection, and herd survival analyses in herds with automated data capture, mined years of automatically collected data from two South African dairy farms – one using a total mixed ration (TMR) system and the other pasture based.

His more recent paper, Precision livestock farming technologies to support sustainable beef cattle production: A South African perspective, turns to the beef industry and examines technologies ranging from electronic identification and GPS tracking to activity sensors and automated systems, and their potential application in South African farming.

Together, they raise a deceptively simple question: what could farmers do differently if they made better use of the information already being collected?

When the herd becomes an individual

Precision livestock farming, or PLF, shifts the focus from managing cattle principally as a herd to using continuous data to understand individual animals.

Radio frequency identification (RFID) can connect an animal to a lifelong record of its movement, health and performance. GPS collars can track cattle across extensive rangelands, while activity monitors can detect changes in movement and behaviour. Automated feeding and weighing systems can link individual inputs to performance.

For Gresse, however, the value lies not in the gadget but in the decision it allows a farmer to make.

His dairy research provides a striking example.

Analysis of years of existing herd records showed a strong correlation between a sire and the survivability of his progeny, with R² values of 0.91 in the TMR herd and 0.97 in the pasture based herd. The researchers also found that survivability fell sharply after the first few lactations, with most exits occurring between the heifer phase and third lactation.

For Gresse, the findings challenged the assumption that better farming necessarily begins with buying more technology.

“We do not always need new technology to make better decisions. Sometimes we need to properly use the technology and the data we already have.”

Farmers, he says, may already be sitting on “a genuine research and decision-making asset” in their own data.

Beyond the individual animal

For Gresse, healthier, more productive cattle and healthier landscapes are not competing goals.

Accurate animal-level data can help farmers match feed to actual need, while GPS and activity data can show how cattle are using rangeland – information that can guide rotational grazing, protect veld condition and reduce pressure on areas that need time to recover. Better traceability and biosecurity can also help protect South African beef’s access to export markets.

Making those benefits accessible beyond well-resourced commercial farms, however, will require more than cheaper technology. Gresse argues for financing tailored to smaller farmers, better rural connectivity and sustained technical and extension support.

Crucially, he says technology should be designed around what smallholder farmers actually need and can manage, rather than simply offering them scaled-down versions of commercial systems.

It is a philosophy that increasingly takes Gresse beyond the animal itself.

He is completing his PhD at Mandela University using remotely sensed satellite data to rethink conservation and biodiversity management in the Karoo, working across SANParks land, conventional farms, private nature reserves and game farms.

His hope is that the next decade will bring far closer integration between herd and landscape data – combining information from individual cattle with satellite imagery, GPS and measures of veld condition to inform how entire rangelands are managed.

“We need to start managing livestock and biodiversity as part of one connected system rather than treating cattle farming and conservation as separate, sometimes competing, interests,” Gresse says.

“If we get the accessibility question right, this could be a genuine turning point for building more resilient farming landscapes across the country, not just more efficient individual farms.”

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Africa is standing at the edge of the AI technological revolution that could either deepen its dependence on countries like the USA and China, or create an unprecedented opportunity to build the continent’s digital, economic and intellectual future.

The keynote speaker, Nkemdilim Uwaje Begho, is one of Africa’s leading technology executives and AI strategists, CEO of Futuresoft and founding partner of AI CoLab Africa.

She said: “Africa must not be reduced to a consumer of AI developed elsewhere, nor allow our intellectual property and data to continually leave our shores. We need to start building our own house and decide what Africa wants AI to do for Africans.”

Our own house, she explained, includes creating our own AI development blueprint, data infrastructure, languages, intellectual property, businesses and benchmarks. It also includes retaining our talent.

She emphasised the AI revolution is already rapidly accelerating who makes decisions, how quickly businesses innovate, what constitutes skilled work in an era where businesses are partnering with AI agents in decision-making, and where economic power resides.

“Those who control data, AI systems and data centres are increasingly positioned to control economic value worldwide,” she explained. “And while AI can dramatically widen access to knowledge, essential services and employment, it can just as easily widen the economic divide and concentrate power in the hands of a relatively small number of companies and countries.”

To counter this, Africa needs its own datasets, data stewardship systems and benchmarks for assessing AI.

“We also need to ask who owns the data and who gets to decide what counts as knowledge. This is where AI sovereignty comes in. It requires retaining control over African data, building our own data infrastructure, advancing local talent, and creating African AI businesses. It also requires energy and water security as AI requires enormous computing infrastructure and data centres that use vast amounts of electricity and water.”

The African Union adopted a continental AI strategy in 2024, and investment in AI is already making positive impact across healthcare, agriculture and other sectors. But, Begho says, too many initiatives remain fragmented pilots rather than scalable systems capable of generating sustainable economic value.

Elaborating on this, Professor Muki Moeng, the Acting Vice-Chancellor of Nelson Mandela University said: “AI and data science present extraordinary opportunities for our continent, including new ways of addressing challenges in healthcare, education, agriculture, food security, environmental sustainability, entrepreneurship, governance and economic development.

“However, its transformative potential will only be realised if it meaningfully contributes to addressing our realities of inequality, poverty, unemployment, educational access, infrastructure constraints and digital exclusion. Inclusive digital transformation must create opportunities for young people, for rural communities, for women and girls, for persons with disabilities, and for those whose languages, cultures and lived experiences are too often absent from digital systems.”

Distinguished Professor of Information Technology and Director of the Centre for Community Technologies at Nelson Mandela University, Darelle van Greunen, said: “As universities, we have a responsibility to help shape how AI is understood, developed and used. This requires technical knowledge and transdisciplinary insights. It also addresses who benefits, and who might be excluded. At Mandela University our commitment to human-centred digital innovation through teaching, research, community engagement and initiatives such as the Virtual Academy and the AI Community of Practice, provides a foundation for this work.”

Professor Azwinndini Muronga, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Innovation and Internationalisation said: “Universities need to bring together government, higher education, business, industry and civil society in Africa as it directly impacts education, employment and the future of Africa’s young and growing population. Our young people need to be meaningful participants in shaping technological development, and we need to enable them to achieve their full potential.”

Adding to this, universities have to teach students how to question AI.

“Students who rely uncritically on generative AI content risk weakening precisely the intellectual capacities that universities exist to develop: critical thinking, judgement and the ability to interrogate knowledge,” said Dr Mukhtar Raban, lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities and Institutional Lead for Humanising Pedagogy in the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Learning and Teaching at Nelson Mandela University.

“AI systems trained on data without in-depth input from African societies can produce answers that appear authoritative but are profoundly wrong,” Raban explained. “Africa, for example, is home to more than 2 000 languages and associated cultures, yet much of the digital world is built around languages, datasets and assumptions generated elsewhere in the world.

“The danger is the reinforcement of existing inequalities - through algorithms that reproduce biases, exclude African knowledge and make decisions about Africa using datasets in which Africans are inadequately represented.”

The imperative is for universities to nurture new generations of graduate across all faculties; who are capable of developing AI systems and working with AI, without surrendering judgement to it. Essential graduate skills include curiosity, integrity and critical thinking.

Ajit Gopalakrishnan, who heads Odin Education, a division of Jendamark Automation and who is committed to democratising technology, added that many education systems are still preparing young people for a world that is already disappearing. “Young people ARE AI and they have different expectations of what technology can do,” he said.

He offered the example of his teenage son’s approach to studying for an examination. His son used AI to construct his own study guide, generate an exam he wrote and then got AI to identify his weaknesses. For him, AI is an engaging learning partner.

Gopalakrishnan said the future is looking good for our young people if AI scaling can scale human employment. “Africa does not have a talent problem. It has an access problem that we have to rectify,” he said, adding that a pivotal advantage of AI is that “it is the most distributable technology every created.”

His company is currently building a human oversight lens to figure out how to exponentially increase access to technology in Africa for Africa in a sustainable way.”

The real measure of inclusive and ethical digital transformation in Africa is whether it helps Africa create better opportunities, stronger economies, more equitable societies and greater human agency.

Begho challenged the conventional metrics of AI-driven productivity. “Instead of celebrating headcount reductions, Africa should be assessing how many new jobs can be created, what new roles can emerge and are those jobs providing decent livelihoods.

“Africa cannot simply import a model of automation designed for economies with fundamentally different demographic and employment realities. We must have metrics that are people first and not automation first. The real measure of AI in Africa, is African progress,” she concluded.

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The South African Environmental Observation Network (NRF-SAEON) congratulates Dr Zanele Ntshidi, its Arid Land Node Manager, and the South African National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (SANCID) for winning five awards yesterday, 14 October 2026, at the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) conference held in Marseille, France.

Ntshidi is an executive member of SANCID and travelled to Marseille as part of the South African delegation that walked away with five coveted awards.

The ICID awards recognise researchers behind some of the world’s outstanding and innovative work aimed at promoting efficient utilisation of water in agriculture, thus contributing to food and water security.

South Africa’s awards include the addition of four World Heritage Irrigation structures (WHIS) to the global register. The heritage sites recognised at the 26th ICID conference are: 1) Bulshoek Dam, 2) Nqweba Dam, 3) Upper Van Stadens Dam, and 4) Vaal Barrage Structure.

The global register is a repository of information about irrigation and drainage schemes across the world, recognised for advancing food security by ensuring timely, adequate and sustainable agricultural water supply.

SANCID also won the best-performing National Committee, seeing off Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. Researchers from NRF-SAEON, the Water Research Commission, the Agricultural Research Council, the University of the Free State, and the Department of Agriculture proudly received these awards for the country. This underscores the importance of Private-Public-Partnerships in tackling pressing environmental challenges.

Says Ntshidi, “This achievement is a testament to the power of collaboration and strong partnerships. By bringing together diverse stakeholders, expertise, and resources around a shared vision, we were able to maximise our collective impact and achieve this desirable result.”

SANCID, a multi-stakeholder committee that represents South Africa at ICID, aligns its operational objectives with the foundational vision centred around sustainable water management for the future.

Its overarching strategic vision is focused on sustainable irrigation water management aligned with Vision 2030 and the National Water Resource Strategy, committed to using water efficiently and building resilient water resources to ensure:

(1) Food Security – enhancing agricultural output through smart irrigation, (2) Economic Growth – facilitating development while managing a highly stressed national water infrastructure, and (3) Resource Sustainability – mitigating the threats that water scarcity poses to energy production and overall quality of life.

Ntshidi presented her work at the ICID conference, entitled Long-term research on water and food security: Empowering female emerging farmers to grow food that feeds nations. She focused on adopting climate-smart agriculture and building climate-resilient, food-secure communities.

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The North-West University (NWU) continues to demonstrate how business education, innovation and entrepreneurial thinking can contribute to solving real-world challenges, with one of its students earning national recognition for turning mining waste into a potential resource for sustainable construction.

Martin Nkgodi Maupa, a postgraduate diploma student at the NWU Business School, won the Innovation category of the 2026 Artisans of Mzansi competition, receiving R100 000 to advance his circular manufacturing business.

Through his enterprise, Maupa Engineering and Growth Edge (Pty) Ltd, he is transforming ferrochrome mining waste into bricks and developing alternative materials for suitable construction applications.

His achievement reflects the potential of combining technical expertise with business knowledge to create practical solutions that respond to environmental challenges, support local economic development and contribute to the green economy in South Africa.

Martin received the award from the Minister of Higher Education and Training, Buti Manamela, and Zimkhitha Peter, the CEO of Allan and Gill Gray Philanthropy South Africa, during the 2026 South African National Artisan Awards.

Raised in Ga-Phasha village in Steelpoort, Limpopo, Martin is a qualified diesel mechanic who identified an opportunity in material that is often discarded. While mining generates significant economic value, surrounding communities continue to face challenges associated with accumulated waste and rising construction costs.

Through his business, he also supplies processed mining waste as an alternative to conventional sand for suitable construction applications. His customers include households, stokvels and local hardware stores.

The award will contribute towards supporting South African Bureau of Standards testing of his bricks, an important step in advancing their suitability for the construction market. Martin also plans to automate manufacturing processes, increase production capacity and expand access to major retailers, with the ambition of seeing his products stocked on their shelves.

His innovation journey extends beyond brick manufacturing. Martin participates in the Circular Cement Programme of Fix Forward, which equips emerging construction entrepreneurs with research, innovation and practical knowledge on using industrial and agricultural waste as supplementary cementitious materials. The approach aims to reduce reliance on traditional cement and support more sustainable construction practices.

The programme receives support through funding from the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention of the Presidency and the Department of Labour through the Industrial Development Corporation.

Martin’s journey brings together artisan expertise, postgraduate business education and an understanding of the needs of local communities. His experience demonstrates how technical skills and entrepreneurial thinking can help identify practical solutions to environmental and economic challenges.

His ambition is to grow an enterprise that creates local employment opportunities and contributes to the green economy in South Africa. By transforming mining waste into a potential resource for the construction industry, he hopes to demonstrate how environmental challenges can become opportunities for inclusive economic development.
His achievement highlights the potential of innovation to connect skills development, entrepreneurship and sustainable business practices, while creating solutions that respond to the needs of communities.

Through his work, Martin is pursuing a vision in which waste becomes a valuable resource, local enterprise can grow, and innovation contributes to a more sustainable and inclusive future.

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For many doctoral graduates, completing their degree marks the end of years of intensive research, long hours, and academic sacrifice. For Dr Fortunate Elesa Ntuli, however, the journey has also been about finding ways to make a difference beyond her research.

Dr Ntuli was awarded a Doctor of Computing in Computer Systems Engineering during the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) Spring Graduation ceremonies.

Ntuli is passionate about student development.Her achievement is particularly significant because, while pursuing her doctorate, she continued to contribute to student development and the broader ICT community through initiatives that encourage young people to explore technology, innovation, and leadership.

Ntuli’s doctoral research focused on interference mitigation for spectrum-sharing networks, an area that addresses the growing demand for efficient use of wireless spectrum as more connected devices and technologies rely on wireless communication.

Her research resulted in the development of an AI-based real-time spectrum optimisation framework that combines several advanced technologies, including spectrum sensing, long short-term memory (LSTM) prediction, convolutional neural network (CNN)-based interference detection and deep reinforcement learning.

The results demonstrate the practical potential of the framework. It achieved approximately 94% detection accuracy, reduced decision latency to 15 milliseconds, and improved spectrum utilisation and throughput. In simple terms, the research explores how intelligent technologies can help communication networks more accurately identify interference and make faster decisions about how to use available spectrum.

But while Ntuli was working on this highly technical research, she was also investing her time in something equally important: people. Ntuli has been actively involved in the Faculty of ICT’s Girls in Tech initiatives, contributing to programmes designed to encourage and empower students, particularly young women, to see themselves as future participants and leaders in the technology sector.

Her involvement reflects a belief that developing technology is only part of building the future of ICT. Developing the people who will create, manage and lead that technology is just as important. S

he has also contributed to the Faculty’s Hacker Society activities, where she has engaged students on issues relating to technology, leadership, career development and opportunities within the ICT industry.

Her contribution to student development and innovation is not new. Dr Ntuli has been actively involved in the Tshwane Varsity Hackathon (TVH) since 2021, contributing to its growth as a platform for student innovation, digital skills development and entrepreneurship.

She served as Chief Organiser from 2023 to 2024 and now serves as Digital Academy Lead from 2025, where she coordinates student activations, webinars, skills-development initiatives and post-hackathon incubation activities.

Through these roles, Ntuli has supported collaboration between TUT, partner universities, industry and other stakeholders while helping students develop practical digital skills.

More recently, at the 2026 Faculty of ICT Research Day, she presented research focusing on generative AI and curriculum development in South African universities, reflecting her continued interest in emerging technologies and their impact on education.

Her research journey, therefore, extends beyond a single doctoral project. It reflects an ongoing engagement with technologies that are changing the way people communicate, learn and work.

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A team from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi (KNUST), Ghana, led by Professor Priscilla Kolibea Mante of the Department of Pharmacology, has secured $5.1 million from Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited’s Global Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Programme to strengthen climate-resilient health systems through the pharmacy workforce.

The funding will support PharmAdapt, an initiative that seeks to strengthen the capacity of pharmacists to respond to the health effects of climate change. The project will be hosted by KNUST’s Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Professor Mante serves as Team Lead, with Professor Edmund Ekuadzi and Professor Samuel Asare-Nkansah serving as Technical Portfolio Leads.

PharmAdapt will position pharmacists as frontline contributors to climate-responsive healthcare in Ghana by building their capacity in climate-related health risks, emergency preparedness, climate-responsive pharmaceutical care and environmentally sustainable pharmacy practices.

The initiative will also develop tools, standards and approaches to help pharmaceutical systems anticipate, prepare for and respond to the health consequences of climate change. Lessons from the project are expected to inform similar interventions in other settings.

“Climate change is increasingly shaping the health challenges our communities face, yet the pharmacy workforce remains an underutilised part of the response. PharmAdapt gives us an opportunity to change this by equipping pharmacists with the knowledge, tools and systems they need to contribute meaningfully to climate-resilient healthcare. Beyond training individuals, our ambition is to build approaches that become embedded within pharmacy practice and can be scaled beyond Ghana,” Professor Mante said.

The Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, Professor Christian Agyare, described the partnership as an opportunity to strengthen the contribution of pharmacists to climate action and health-system resilience.

“Takeda’s support gives us an excellent opportunity to put pharmacists right at the heart of how we respond to climate change and health. Through PharmAdapt project we will train our pharmacists, prepare them for emergencies, and build standards that will last well beyond this project,” Professor Agyare said.

He added that the partnership would enable KNUST to develop practical tools and lessons relevant to countries across West Africa and beyond.

The award will bring together KNUST’s expertise in pharmaceutical sciences, health research, workforce development and innovation to address the intersection of climate change and health.

Through PharmAdapt, the University will work to build a pharmacy workforce better prepared to respond to emerging climate-related health challenges and support more resilient and sustainable health systems.

About the Takeda Global CSR Programme

PharmAdapt is one of four new collaborations selected under Takeda’s 2026 Global CSR Programme to advance climate-resilient health systems.

Takeda announced a combined commitment of $22.2 million to the four initiatives, which will support locally led approaches to strengthening health systems in communities vulnerable to the effects of climate change.

The selected collaborations involve initiatives in Ghana, Nepal, Honduras, Peru, Egypt and Lebanon and address different aspects of climate-related health-system resilience.

KNUST received $5.1 million to strengthen the pharmacy workforce as frontline health workers and advance climate-responsive care through capacity building and environmentally sustainable pharmacy practices in Ghana.

Takeda’s Global CSR Programme supports long-term partnerships aimed at strengthening health systems and expanding sustainable access to healthcare, with projects selected with the participation of Takeda employees globally.

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The inner universe is a world of atoms, molecules, crystals and microscopic structures where dimensions are measured in nanometres and picometres - or one trillionth of a metre.

It holds the answers to many of the greatest challenges of our time, including energy security, the just energy transition, ecosystem health, nanomedicine development, digital transformation, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors and quantum technology.

For 15 years the DSTI-NRF Centre for High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (CHRTEM) in the Faculty of Science at Nelson Mandela University has been researching and finding answers to these challenges at the atomic and nanoscale.

Supported by the Department of Science Technology and Innovation (DSTI) , the National Research Foundation (NRF) and Nelson Mandela University, it is a critical national scientific facility for South Africa.

A delegation from the DSTI, NRF and Mandela University will join national and international scientists as well as industry and innovation leaders at the CHRTEM in mid-October for a three-day conference in celebration of its fifteenth anniversary.

“CHRTEM houses the only aberration-corrected Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) in Africa. The Centre also includes other microscopy infrastructure, all equipped with unique detector technology, essential for research, analysis and development at the atomic and nanoscale,” says CHRTEM Director, physicist Professor Jaco Olivier.

Almost every manufactured object, construct or technology in existence – from a power plant to a cooldrink can – has to have its properties investigated and assessed at this level.

“CHRTEM has substantial expertise across a broad range of electron microscopy, advanced quantitative imaging and materials science techniques, combining extremely sophisticated instrumentation with the scientific, technical and computational skills required to extract information from increasingly complex datasets,” Olivier explains.

The strategic importance of CHRTEM is ever-increasing as technologies become more dependent on materials engineered at smaller length scales and with increasingly complex structures.

“To understand how a material behaves, we have to understand what is happening within it, studying its microstructure, identifying any flaws, potential failure mechanisms and microstructural changes when subjected to extreme stimuli, such as intense heat or pressure,” Olivier explains.

“This is essential for the development of new products and processes, and to assess the performance, safety and life extension of materials. In a power plant, for example, microscopic degradation can dramatically affect safety, production and the continuity of electricity supply.”

Working closely with industry and research centres in South Africa and worldwide, CHRTEM’s team of predominantly physicists have logged more than 40 000 instrument hours for research and analysis, and over 1 000 postgraduate students have been supported through research and training.

“Our focus,” says Olivier, “is on enabling atomic-scale research and advanced materials analysis in support of the South African National System of Innovation, while simultaneously advancing scientific frontiers by continually pushing the boundaries of spatial resolution to reveal the fundamental structure of matter.

“Achieving this requires the increasing integration of advanced computational methods, including AI-driven data processing and computational imaging. These approaches unlock new scientific opportunities and equip the next generation of researchers with specialised skills in modern data analysis and computational techniques, preparing them for the demands of an increasingly digital and data-driven scientific landscape.”

CHRTEM is a platform through which researchers in South Africa partner in international science. Collaborations include the University of Oxford, Max Planck Institutes, Idaho National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Ohio State University and the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR), among many others, as well as partners across the Global South.

The mid-October delegation will experience the CHRTEM and all its capabilities and instruments, including the two new scanning electron microscopes (SEMs) that arrived in May this year from JEOL in Japan - one of the world’s leading electron microscopy manufacturers with whom the CHRTEM has a longstanding relationship.

“The new instruments offer greater stability, faster acquisition, substantially stronger signals and sharper images, as part of the renewal of the Centre’s capabilities,” says Olivier. “Increasingly advanced technology has speeded up the research process from months and weeks to a few hours, depending on what is being investigated.”

Researchers using the Centre’s facilities work across disciplines: physics, chemistry, engineering, zoology, biochemistry, physiology, medicine, nanomedicine, marine science, geology, agriculture, manufacturing, and green energy.

An example is its partnership with Sasol, where CHRTEM contributes to catalyst development and characterisation. Catalysts accelerate chemical reactions, and understanding their structures at the atomic scale is central to designing more effective materials and lower-emission technologies, including the development of sustainable aviation fuel as part of the just energy transition.

Another key research area is green hydrogen. Hydrogen storage and transportation can expose materials to immense pressures and, in some applications, extremely low temperatures. CHRTEM researchers investigate these interactions, generating knowledge that is essential to understanding material behaviour and hydrogen safety.

The Centre’s work with Hulamin – a South African based aluminium company - investigates what happens to aluminium at the microscopic level during processing – to determine its strength, durability and performance.

An emerging role is in biomedical technologies and nanomedicine, as Olivier explains. “Advanced microscopy provides essential information on nanoparticles, biological structures, drug-delivery systems and therapeutic materials. CHRTEM is part of a strategic collaboration with the DSTI Nanomedicine Platform at Nelson Mandela University Medical School. This creates opportunities in nanomedicine, diagnostics, vaccines, biologics and biotechnology.”

CHRTEM contributes to agriculture and food security through research involving plant materials, plant-pathogen interactions, biomass and agricultural products.

Working with the University’s Institute for Coastal and Marine Research, CHRTEM supports investigations into oceanic invertebrates, marine diatom ecology, novel products, environmental health and pollution.

Diatoms are microscopic organisms found in aquatic environments that serve as indicators of water quality and ecosystem health. At this scale, seeing becomes a form of environmental diagnosis.

These are a few examples of CHRTEM’s unique space in advancing South Africa’s scientific leadership. Without the ability to characterise and understand matter at the atomic and nanoscale, South Africa would be constrained in its ability to contribute meaningfully to national and global research.

Prof Olivier says: “Maintaining this capability is essential for South Africa to participate in addressing global challenges, develop and adapt technologies locally for national development, and remain an active partner in international science and innovation.”

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Canva has appointed Learning Curve as its first locally based Canva Partner in Africa, giving organisations across the continent access to the global visual communication platform with local implementation, training and support.

The partnership comes as businesses, enterprises and universities face a growing challenge: not simply choosing new technology, but integrating it into existing workflows and ensuring employees have the skills and support to use it effectively.

Learning Curve already works with organisations across Sub-Saharan Africa to improve productivity, communication, creativity and learning through technology. The addition of Canva expands that offering at a time when visual communication, content creation and AI-enabled design are becoming part of everyday work across organisations.

Glen Lumley, CEO of Learning Curve, says organisations are surrounded by technology choices, but purchasing another platform does not automatically improve productivity. “The real value comes from selecting the right solution for the problem, integrating it into the way people work and giving teams the confidence and skills to use it properly.

“Canva gives businesses and educational institutions another powerful way to create, communicate and collaborate. Our role is to help organisations turn the platform into a productive and properly managed part of their operations,” says Lumley.

The partnership will see Learning Curve support Canva Business, Canva Enterprise and Canva Campus across Africa:

• Canva Business – brings content creation, collaboration and brand management together for growing organisations.

• Canva Enterprise – gives larger organisations the security, administration, governance and brand controls needed to scale across teams.

• Canva Campus – supports higher education institutions across teaching and learning, research communication, marketing, student engagement, employability and entrepreneurship.

Lumley says the appointment also reflects a broader shift in the way organisations create content. “Presentations, proposals, reports, training material, internal communications, video and social content are increasingly being produced by employees across different departments rather than by dedicated design teams alone.

“That creates new opportunities for organisations to communicate faster and more effectively, but it can also lead to duplicated work, inconsistent branding and fragmented processes when technology, skills and workflows are not properly aligned,” says Lumley.

He says the rapid adoption of AI-enabled tools is adding another layer to that challenge, making implementation, training and governance increasingly important. “For many organisations, the process has already started informally, with individual employees, lecturers, students and departments using Canva for everyday communication and content creation.

“The next step, according to Learning Curve, is to bring those users into a more connected and managed environment where teams can collaborate, access approved brand assets and produce content more consistently,” says Lumley.

Learning Curve will assist customers with identifying appropriate applications for the platform, implementation, training and adoption across departments. “Visual communication is now core to how organisations work, not an add-on,” says Bianca Sibiya, Canva Africa Lead.

“Access to Canva is only the first step. The real value comes from helping teams use it with confidence and supporting adoption across the organisation. Through Learning Curve, businesses, enterprises and educational institutions across Africa now have that local support built in.

“Canva has more than 260 million monthly active users across 190 countries and supports more than 100 languages. We’re excited about what we can build together across the continent,” concludes Sibiya.

Businesses and higher education institutions interested in accessing Canva through Learning Curve can visit learningcurveglobal.com or https://learningcurveglobal.com/canva-for-business/.

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Three winning teams from the Faculty of Information and Communication Technology’s (ICT) Tshwane Varsity Hackathon (TVH) 2025 showcased their innovative solutions on a national platform after being invited to exhibit at the prestigious Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Education (EDHE) ABSA Studentpreneurs Indaba 2026.

Hosted at the Birchwood Hotel and Conference Centre in Boksburg, Gauteng, from 9 to 11 September 2026, the annual event brought together student entrepreneurs, innovators, investors, industry partners and other stakeholders to exchange ideas, explore collaborations and celebrate entrepreneurial excellence.

For the TVH 2025 winners, the invitation marked a significant milestone, providing an opportunity to take their innovations beyond the hackathon environment and engage with a broader entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Representing Ubuntu Hackers, the overall winners of TVH 2025, Scrum Master Matome Maake showcased Viginet, an integrated hardware and software solution developed to combat infrastructure vandalism and cable theft.

Exhibiting in the main Student Market, Ubuntu Hackers attracted interest from visitors, potential stakeholders and fellow innovators. The platform enabled the team to demonstrate the practical applications of Viginet, discuss the challenges it addresses and receive valuable feedback from a diverse audience.

Second-place team Cyber Geek, represented by Scrum Master Ambiwe Masingi, presented Aqua Balance, a web-based water management system designed to address water-use challenges arising from the rapid growth of car wash businesses in the City of Tshwane.

The solution features digital registration for car wash owners, monitoring of water sources and consumption, payment verification, compliance management and educational resources. Aqua Balance also incorporates geolocation functionality and an interactive chatbot to assist users.

Participation in the exhibition allowed the team to engage directly with potential investors, sponsors and industry stakeholders, providing valuable insights into the solution’s market relevance and long-term implementation potential.

Third-place winners Kasi Konnect were represented by Yamkela Zele, who introduced the team’s digital platform aimed at connecting township businesses, freelancers, residents and municipalities.

Designed to support township economic development and improve access to opportunities, Kasi Konnect generated considerable interest among attendees. Through live demonstrations and stakeholder engagements, the team gathered constructive feedback while exploring opportunities to expand the platform’s reach and impact.

For the students, participating in the EDHE ABSA Studentpreneurs Indaba was about far more than exhibiting their projects. It offered a unique opportunity to test and refine their ideas in a real-world entrepreneurial environment, engage with industry leaders and gain first-hand experience in pitching innovative solutions.

Their presence at the national event demonstrated the transformative role of initiatives such as the Tshwane Varsity Hackathon, which continues to provide emerging innovators with pathways to develop, validate and showcase solutions that address pressing societal challenges.

Reflecting on the experience, the students expressed appreciation for the opportunity to represent both their innovations and the University on a prominent national stage. Their participation highlighted the growing potential of student-led innovation and reinforced the importance of creating platforms that empower young entrepreneurs to translate ideas into impactful solutions.

The achievements of Ubuntu Hackers, Cyber Geek and Kasi Konnect serve as a powerful reminder of the value of nurturing innovation, collaboration and entrepreneurship among students, while positioning their solutions for future growth, investment and community impact.

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Thabang MoashetsiWhat began as a Grade 7 visit to the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists has transformed into an inspiring entrepreneurial journey for Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) Computer Science student Thabang Moashetsi, whose innovative solar technology is now headed for the prestigious National Pitch competition in November 2026.

Moashetsi is the founder of Allketek Energies, a startup developing the Autonomous Solar Asset Management System (ASAMS), an innovative solution designed to improve the cleaning, maintenance and monitoring of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels. The technology addresses one of the key challenges facing the renewable energy sector by automating essential maintenance functions that help solar systems operate at peak efficiency.

His passion for innovation was ignited in 2019 when a teacher introduced him to the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists. During the event, he was inspired by the story of a young inventor who had created a medical dispenser to assist elderly, deaf and visually impaired individuals through the use of light and sound alerts.

“That story changed how I viewed innovation,” recalls Moashetsi. “Throughout high school, I continued to develop prototypes and present them to panels of judges at the Expo. Those experiences strengthened my confidence in problem-solving and sparked my interest in using technology to address real-world challenges.”

His innovation journey continued at Vuselela TVET College, where he received training in solar PV mounting and gained hands-on experience installing solar systems. It was there that he identified an opportunity to solve a recurring industry challenge.

“If solar panels require regular cleaning and maintenance to perform effectively, could some of that work be automated?” he asked. That simple yet powerful question became the foundation of ASAMS.

Designed as an integrated solution, ASAMS combines autonomous movement, automated cleaning, intelligent sensors, monitoring capabilities and fault detection technology. The innovation draws on Moashetsi’s practical experience in solar installations and his academic expertise in Computer Science.

He credits TUT with providing the knowledge and environment necessary to transform the concept into a viable technological solution.

“Through my Computer Science studies, I gained knowledge in software development, automation, sensors, data systems and control technologies, enabling me to contribute to the project’s technological and software components,” he says.

Beyond technical skills, TUT also fostered an ecosystem where academic learning, entrepreneurship and innovation intersect, allowing him to develop solutions with real-world impact.

A major milestone came when Moashetsi and his team participated in the NWU × ABSA × YAEI Entrepreneurship and Innovation Event, where they showcased ASAMS to industry experts, entrepreneurs and judges. The experience provided valuable exposure and critical feedback that helped refine both the technology and its commercial proposition.

“Communicating a complex technological innovation within a limited timeframe was challenging, but it reinforced an important lesson,” says Moashetsi. “Having an innovative idea is only part of the innovation journey. The ability to communicate its value effectively is equally important.”

Behind the success of ASAMS is a multidisciplinary team whose expertise spans engineering, business operations, marketing and technical development. The team includes Moashetsi as Project Lead, Researcher, Programmer and PV Mounter; Oupanyana Bojang as Head of Structural Design; Mahomed Khan as Chief Operations Officer; Sienki Bojang as Structural Design Assistant; Oratile Matlhako as PV Mounter and Installer; Raymond Chisinahama as Marketing Strategist; and RS SA, which provides advisory support on component procurement.

Their dedication and hard work paid off when ASAMS was shortlisted for the National Pitch Competition, while also securing R10 000 in prize money. For the team, the achievement represents recognition of years of perseverance, innovation and determination despite resource constraints.

“It was a special moment for the team and me,” reflects Moashetsi. “My immediate thought was that this was not the end of the journey, but another opportunity to build further.”

As they prepare for the National Pitch on 18 November 2026 at the Gallagher Convention Centre, the team remains focused on enhancing the prototype’s autonomous movement, cleaning mechanisms, electronics, control systems and monitoring capabilities. They are also refining their business model and presentation to showcase the full technical and commercial potential of the innovation.

For Moashetsi, the journey from a curious Grade 7 learner to a national-level innovator demonstrates the power of curiosity, education and determination. His story serves as a reminder that transformative ideas often begin with a single spark and that, when nurtured, they can grow into innovations capable of shaping a more sustainable future.

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For eight days, 11 TUT engineering students took a temporary leave from their classrooms and hit the road – literally. These students were part of the TUT-winning SunChaser 4 team in the 2026 Sasol Solar Challenge.

The tyres hit the road at Sasolburg on 10 September 2026 at 9am and 2 369.2km later, the team of students, lecturers and engineers from Ford Company crossed the winning line in Paarl. That was eight days later, at Agter Paarl Road in Paarl, at 3.17pm on 17 September 2026.

SunChaser team are awarded for the Sasol Solar Challenge for 2026 at an awards ceremony held at Green School in Paarl.

Among the many lessons the students learned through this encounter was that there were no neat textbook answers when the wind picked up. There was no ready-made answer when a component needed attention, or a new problem surfaced just hours before the next stage. It was only the team, the driver, the SunChaser 4 and the road ahead.

When the solar car crossed the finish line in Paarl, completing 2 369.2km and winning the Challenger Class of the 2026 Sasol Solar Challenge, months and, for some, years of engineering, testing and problem-solving came together.

The students represented different stages and disciplines, from electrical and mechanical engineering to mechatronics. Each had a role to play, but on the road, their individual skills had to work together as one machine.

For second-year electrical engineering student Lwazi Mbulawa, that meant being ready to pick up whatever needed to be done.

“I didn’t have one fixed role on SunChaser 4. I was the person who picked up whatever the car needed, from stripping down parts for repair to fixing bodywork and doing Computer-Aided Design (CAD),” he said.

Mbulawa worked on composite body repairs, disassembled and reassembled components, and provided CAD support. The changing workload tested his ability to adapt quickly.

“I could go from taking a component apart to repairing bodywork to producing CAD in the same week, often against tight deadlines,” he said.

The experience also showed him the difference between solving a problem on paper and solving one with a real machine in front of you.

“In class, problems have clean answers, but on the car, you work with limited time, limited resources and a team relying on you,” he said.

For Marco Terblanche, a third-year Bachelor of Engineering Technology in Mechanical Engineering student, the challenge moved between the workshop and the road. He performed Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining for upgrades, redesigned the steering mechanism to improve drivability and reduce driver fatigue, maintained the steering system, and was one of the three drivers.

One of his biggest challenges was keeping SunChaser 4 on the road in high winds and when passing oncoming trucks. The team responded by reducing the vehicle’s optimal speed to prioritise safety.

His experience with SunChaser also sparked an interest in CNC machining and led him to start his own CNC machining business.

“I learned that real-world experience of using something you design is more important than trusting the design on a computer or on paper,” he said.

After three years with the project, winning the Challenger Class was a chance to see that work bear fruit.

“Winning the challenge gave me immense joy because I saw the fruits of my labour for the past three years,” he said.

For Lwazi Mbulawa, SunChaser 4 was about being ready for whatever the car needed, from repairs and bodywork to CAD.

For Katleho Mosoeu, a third-year Mechatronics Engineering student, the journey carried another significance. She was the only female student on the SunChaser 4 team.

Mosoeu worked on the mechanical side of the vehicle, assisting with the braking system, suspension, steering wheel and wheel covers designed to reduce drag. She also served on the mechanical lead team and as a battery safety officer.

Working on SunChaser taught her that engineering does not always follow a perfectly drawn line from problem to solution.

“I learned that engineering is not always about having a perfect solution. Sometimes you must make quick, practical decisions and adapt to what is happening in front of you,” she said.

Being the only female student also strengthened her confidence in her place within engineering.

“Being the only female student on the team was a meaningful experience. It pushed me to become more confident in my abilities and reminded me that I belong in spaces where engineering is happening at the highest level,” Mosoeu said.

She said winning made that feeling even stronger.

“It made me see my place in engineering with more confidence and made me even more determined to continue pursuing the areas of engineering I am passionate about,” she said.

For Bonolo Motsepe, a Mechanical Engineering graduate completing his BEngTech Honours in Mechanical Engineering, the victory marked another chapter in a journey that began in 2023, when he joined SunChaser as a second-year student.

His work has centred on the design, manufacture and assembly of the braking system. During the challenge, he supported mechanical inspections, repairs and adjustments, served as a lead vehicle driver, and mentored newer team members.

His experience was put to the test on Day 3 when drivers reported that the brakes were not clamping as expected, particularly on downhill sections.

“It was a stressful situation because the brakes were a critical safety system, while the wheel covers and steering also needed attention that night,” he said.

The team worked late into the night to investigate the problem and prepare the car for the following day.

For Motsepe, that moment captured one of SunChaser’s biggest lessons: engineering is not only about designing a solution but also about taking responsibility for ensuring it works safely and reliably in practice.

His journey with the team had already included the setback of the car flipping in 2024. Returning two years later and winning the Challenger Class made the achievement even more meaningful.

“I was also proud to help put the TUT name back on the map,” he said. “The victory reminded me that consistent effort, learning from setbacks and making small improvements every day can eventually lead to big results,” he said.

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The National Research Foundation (NRF) will bring together South Africa’s next generation and emerging researchers, leading scholars, research institutions, industry and other National System of Innovation (NSI) stakeholders from around the country at the 2026 Next Generation and Emerging Researchers (NGER) Symposium to be held in Boksburg, Gauteng, from 6 to 9 October 2026.

Journalists are invited to cover the Symposium under these details:

Date: 6 to 9 October 2026
Venue: Birchwood Hotel & OR Tambo Conference Centre, Boksburg, Gauteng
Time: 09:00
Media Registration: Ms Lynette Kamineth, Communications and Stakeholder Relations, NRF-SAASTA, 079 279 5331 / 012 392 9328, LJ.Kamineth@saasta.nrf.ac.za

The NGER Symposium is a prominent driver of the NRF’s broader investment in developing the people, capabilities and partnerships required to advance South Africa’s research ambitions.

The 2026 symposium will provide a dynamic platform for emerging researchers to exchange knowledge, build networks, strengthen research and strengthen leadership skills, explore collaboration opportunities and debate how research can translate into meaningful societal and economic impact.

The four-day programme represents an investment into the next generation of scientists who will shape South Africa’s research and innovation future. Now in its third year since its reintroduction, the symposium speaks directly to the NRF Vision 2030 of “Research for a Better Society” and its statutory mandate to support research, human capacity development and research infrastructure in a way that facilitates knowledge creation, innovation and economic growth.

The NRF’s role extends beyond funding individual research projects - it is also about building a capable, diverse and globally competitive research community able to generate knowledge that contributes to improving the quality of life for all South Africans.

This makes investment in emerging researchers a strategic investment in South Africa’s future. “Developing the next generation of researchers is not simply about producing more researchers.

It is about building excellence, supporting a research community with the skills, networks, confidence and leadership capabilities to drive South African society and the economy forward in a meaningful and impactful way,” says Dr Mbulelo Ncango, Managing Director of the NRF’s Research Advancement (RA) Business Unit.

The symposium responds to this imperative by creating opportunities for postgraduate students, postdoctoral fellows and early-career researchers to engage with top-rated researchers, mentors, industry leaders and other partners across the research ecosystem.

Its focus on innovation and impact, interdisciplinary collaboration, engaged research, knowledge exchange, mentorship, science communication and leadership reflects the need for researchers who can work across disciplinary and institutional boundaries and connect research with real-world challenges.

The symposium programme also aligns closely with the strategic direction of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI), which seeks to transform and strengthen South Africa’s National System of Innovation, and direct it towards addressing the country’s socio-economic and environmental priorities. This is reflected in the 2022–2032 Science, Technology and Innovation Decadal Plan.

Current priorities include expanding and transforming the science, technology and innovation human-resource base, increasing participation by young South African black and women researchers, strengthening research capacity at historically disadvantaged institutions and ensuring that science and innovation contribute more directly to national development.

Against this backdrop, the symposium programme represents an important bridge between investment in research today and the research leadership South Africa will need tomorrow.

“We are intent on creating a pipeline through which emerging researchers can move from developing knowledge to applying, communicating and translating that knowledge in ways that benefit society,” Dr Ncango says.

This pipeline starts early for the NRF, which also prioritises the empowerment of school learners to embrace Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) for their future careers.

The symposium will thus be mentoring school learners and teachers on the first day of the symposium with a special outreach dedicated to the theme: Bridging Futures - Science and Role Modelling Experience for Schools.

The 2026 symposium will explore a range of issues shaping the future of research, including emerging technologies and artificial intelligence, climate and sustainability, health and society, innovation and commercialisation, as well as research careers and leadership.

These conversations reinforce the need for a research community that is excellent, diverse, connected and responsive to the challenges facing South Africa and the wider world.

Through this investment in the next generation of researchers, the NRF is helping to build the capabilities required for a transformed and globally competitive sector, one in which excellent research contributes to a better society.

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While headlines worldwide warn of growing threats to humanity from rogue AI agents and those using it as a means to harm others, youth development organisation Afrika Tikkun cautions about the risks of a young generation using AI without a firm moral compass to guide them.

“Our children and youth are learning to prompt AI before they have learned to question it,” says Marc Lubner, Executive Chairperson and Group CEO of Afrika Tikkun. “This is not a skills gap, it’s a judgement gap that needs to be closed.”

President Cyril Ramaphosa raised the same concerns speaking at the BRICS Summit recently, saying AI has the potential to usher in a new era of productivity and human progress, and if used responsibly can help reduce inequality, poverty and underdevelopment.

Ramaphosa also highlighted AI industry concerns about systems capable of helping develop biological weapons, autonomous action, manipulation, and the disruption of employment, saying society must never reach a situation where technological capability has moved beyond our capacity to understand it, supervise it and control it.

While the NPO embraces and values the advancement that AI can bring, Afrika Tikkun strongly believes that it’s not enough to only teach young people how to use AI. “We have to help them develop a strong moral skill set, so they know how to use AI responsibly.”

“This means inculcating principled judgement, ethical practice, morals and values from a young age. These things can’t be taught as a short-term, crash course module for young adults; they are formed like character is, over years. There’s an onus on us to establish a strong humane element in the way we teach interaction with AI. Young people armed with this powerful AI toolkit need to be taught that the wide capability this gives them requires a moral judgement on its use. This is critical for the use of AI for the greater good.”

At the coalface in township communities, Afrika Tikkun’s foundational philosophy is reflected in its Cradle to Career model which advances the belief that sustained long-term intervention is the best way to equip people to cope with the challenges that work, family, and life throw at them. “While a school has a child for a few hours a day, for a few years, at Afrika Tikkun we work with a child from early childhood to when they find work.

“We know that judgement, ethics and values can’t be meaningfully taught in a module. They are formed as part of one’s character, over years of development,” said Lubner. “It makes sense that pairing moral education and ethical practice with skills training instils the values critical for the responsible use of AI.”

Lubner warns that a generation with enormous capability and no framework for using it results in young people who cannot tell truth from fabrication, who outsource their thinking before they have learned to think, and who are easy to manipulate.

“AI ethics is not a new subject; it is the same lesson applied to a new power. We treat it as a moral, ethical and digital citizenship question, not just a digital skills course. Good judgement is learned through dilemmas, debate, scenarios, and role play and not just by reading a policy.”

Lubner says that Afrika Tikkun teaches AI use within a core values framework. These include the principle of honesty and never passing off AI work as one’s own thinking or using it to deceive.

“We teach good judgement in knowing when to trust an output, when to check it, and being able to admit uncertainty about it at times. We teach responsibility, in that we expect our people to own what they produce in collaboration with an AI tool, because the tool never will,” says Lubner.

Lastly, Afrika Tikkun believes that AI must be used with the utmost respect for others, meaning it must never be used to harm, mock, exclude or manipulate another person.

Lubner is issuing a call to action to others working with children and the youth to also commit to focusing on instilling the moral integrity needed to make the right decisions around AI use, meeting its challenges and prospects with a firm resolve in what’s right.

“In a country where inequality is at the very core of our society, government, educators, industry leaders and the private sector must do everything possible to ensure inequality and injustice are not the result of an AI used for nefarious gains. Instead, like us, those who can must guide the youth on the use of AI, to harness the best outcomes for all humanity.”

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The local team crossed the finish line first in the eight-day race from Sasolburg to Franschhoek this month, ahead of overseas competitors Solar Energy Racers from Switzerland and Team AgniRath from India.

The TUT student engineering team was backed by engineers from the Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (FMCSA), who worked alongside the students to provide technical mentorship and practical engineering support as the SunChaser 4 navigated its way from the Free State to the Western Cape.

In the Sasol Solar Challenge, the winning team is crowned based on distance, not speed.

The ultimate champion is the team that manages to accumulate the most total kilometres on their solar car over the eight-day event.

TUT was crowned this year’s winner after the SunChaser 4 completed a distance of 2 369.2 km.

Each day, teams must navigate a mandatory base route of roughly 250 to 300 km on public roads.

To clock extra distance, teams can choose to drive optional loops during the day before the daily window closes, provided they have enough solar energy and battery charge left.

If a car breaks down or runs out of power and has to be put on a trailer to reach the next stop, the towed distance is excluded from their official count.

In order to win, the SunChaser 4’s team of student engineers had to make real-time decisions around energy consumption, battery temperatures, vehicle reliability and changing weather conditions.

From strong headwinds and cooler conditions during the opening leg from Sasolburg to Swartruggens, to rising temperatures across the North West, intermittent cloud cover and crosswinds en route to Kimberley, as well as the intense heat and the long open roads of the Northern Cape, each stage brought a different technical challenge.

The students relied on telemetry data to continuously adjust cruising speeds and energy consumption.

Battery cooling cycles were extended during periods of intense heat, solar arrays were cleaned to maximise PV efficiency, while suspension, tyre pressure and wheel alignment checks helped the team respond to rougher road surfaces.

Ford’s involvement extended beyond mentorship. During the journey, the company’s engineers helped 3D print and install components on the solar vehicle, provided roadside diagnostic support when a lighting issue arose on the team’s trailer, and made Ford’s mobile workshop and tools available to assist with repairs.

“Every day presented us with a different problem to solve, whether it was managing energy, responding to changing weather or making technical adjustments on the road,” says SunChaser 4 driver and BEngTech mechanical engineering graduate Mpho Mogadimo.

“We have been able to take what we learn in the classroom and test it in a real-world environment, where every decision has an immediate impact. To come away with the win makes that experience even more special.”

FMCSA says the challenge provided the car maker with a practical platform to work directly with emerging South African engineering talent, allowing experienced automotive engineers to share technical expertise while giving students space to make decisions and solve problems themselves.

“What has stood out throughout this journey is the students’ ability to think on their feet,” says FMCSA engineering and operations leader Marko Venter.

“Engineering in the real world does not always happen under controlled conditions. You have weather, road conditions, time pressures and unexpected technical challenges, and you need to find solutions quickly.

“Our role has been to bring our engineering experience to the table and support them where needed, but the students have been the ones doing the thinking, learning and problem-solving.”

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• Prof Elizabeth Streicher of the Division of Molecular Biology and Human Genetics delivered her inaugural lecture on Tuesday 1 September 2026.

• Her research focuses on the transmission and spread of Tuberculosis (TB).

• Knowing where TB transmission is happening can help to stop it from spreading.

Prof Elizabeth Streicher of the Division of Molecular Biology and Human Genetics in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences delivered her inaugural lecture on Tuesday 1 September 2026. The title of her lecture was Decoding tuberculosis: the evolution of technology, epidemiology and the Mycobacterium tuberculosis genome.

Streicher explained to Corporate Communication and Marketing how molecular epidemiology (using genetic information to track how and why diseases spread through populations) has improved our understanding of where drug-resistant TB comes from, how it spreads and how drug resistance evolves within and between populations.

Tell us more about your research and why you became interested in this specific field.

Overall, our research group studies the genome (complete set of DNA instructions found in a cell) of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that cause tuberculosis (TB) disease. Various regions of the genome are interrogated to study different aspects of the disease. My main focus has been on the epidemiology of tuberculosis – how the bacteria’s genome changes over time and what this tells us about the transmission and spread of the disease.

How would you describe the relevance of your work?

If we understand how the bacteria that cause TB change and spread, it can assist in combating TB globally.

How has molecular epidemiology helped improve our understanding of drug-resistant TB?

Molecular epidemiology was very important in drug-resistant TB as it was originally believed that bacteria that become resistant to antibiotics would be less fit and not be able to transmit. But it was shown that they can transmit, and therefore have to be monitored to identify hotspots of transmission and outbreaks, etc.

Can you tell us briefly about the spoligotyping technique and its advantages for studying drug-resistant TB?

Spoligotyping (a molecular technique used to identify and track specific strains of TB bacteria) does not detect drug resistance, but since the technique is relatively quick to do, it can be very useful in real-time situations, e.g. to monitor outbreaks of drug resistance.

Why are interrupting transmission chains and identifying genomic hotspots important for controlling the spread of TB?

Knowing where TB transmission is happening can assist in allocating resources to those areas to stop future transmission and spread of TB.

Higher education can be challenging. What keeps you motivated when things get tough?

Students – how they are so passionate and dedicated to learning and contributing to research and society as a whole.

What aspects of your work do you enjoy the most?

Again, the students and colleagues! But also the fact that it is continuously changing and thereby we are learning and expanding our knowledge. In the end, I know that we contribute to a better society in our small way.

Tell us something exciting about yourself that people would not expect.

Even though I love hiking (day and multi-day hikes) and being outside, I really do not like camping!

How do you spend your free time?

I love hiking (wellbeing in nature) and like to watch most sports.

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Prof Alvaro Viljoen, a distinguished B-rated researcher at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), has been honored by the National Research Foundation (NRF) as the Champion of Research Capacity Development and Transformation at a South African Higher Education Institution.

Prof Viljoen, who serves within the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and holds the DSTI-NRF Research Chair in Phytomedicine, received the prestigious accolade for his exceptional contributions to cultivating scientific talent, fostering academic inclusivity, and transforming South Africa’s research landscape.

Over his illustrious career, he has mentored more than 120 postgraduate students and hosted 26 postdoctoral fellows, heavily prioritizing the advancement of women and researchers from historically disadvantaged backgrounds. Reflecting on his dedication to mentoring the next generation, Prof. Viljoen noted, “In academic collaboration, synergy emerges, empowering researchers to achieve more collectively than individually.”

As a global authority in botanical sciences, Prof Viljoen also directs the SAMRC Herbal Drugs Research Unit and has published over 300 peer-reviewed papers. His groundbreaking work, which includes compiling the first South African Herbal Pharmacopoeia, continues to position TUT at the forefront of global scientific innovation. This milestone achievement not only cements Prof Viljoen’s legacy as a visionary leader but also elevates TUT’s standing as a premier destination for progressive, high-impact research.

Celebrating this national triumph, Dr Vathiswa Papu-Zamxaka, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Engagement, proudly noted, “Your efforts have strengthened collaboration and innovation, both within South Africa and beyond. Congratulations to Prof Viljoen.

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Faith Dowelani has graduated with a doctorate specialising in Quantity Surveying from the University of Pretoria’s (UP) Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology (EBIT), combining her expertise in quantity surveying with machine learning to address one of the construction industry’s persistent challenges: inaccurate cost estimates at the early stages of building projects.

Dowelani’s PhD, completed in UP’s Department of Construction Economics, placed her among the University’s latest cohort of doctoral graduates who received their qualifications during the spring graduations, held from 31 August to 4 September 2026 on Hatfield Campus. Her research investigated whether supervised machine learning could improve the accuracy of cost estimates when limited project information was available.

Her study, titled ‘Supervised machine learning prediction models for early-stage cost estimation of building projects’, used historical data from 68 retail and office projects completed in Gauteng between 2013 and 2024. She developed and tested three prediction models to determine which could most accurately forecast the total capital investment required for a building project.

“At the conceptual stage of a project, detailed building drawings and specifications do not exist yet,” Dowelani explained. “Quantity surveyors have to produce cost estimates based on limited information, which is incredibly difficult and often leads to inaccurate estimates.”

Her models examined five key variables: the cost of the land, estimated construction or improvement costs, general development costs, financing costs and the type of building being constructed. She compared these supervised machine learning techniques: multiple linear regression, decision trees and artificial neural networks.

Dowelani found that machine learning could produce highly accurate early-stage cost estimates, even using a relatively small historical dataset. Multiple linear regression performed best, achieving a mean absolute percentage error of 3.52%, followed by the artificial neural network at 4.74%. The decision tree recorded an error of 22.64%.

One finding that surprised Dowelani was that the simpler multiple linear regression model outperformed the more complex artificial neural network.

“There is often an assumption that more advanced or complicated artificial intelligence models would automatically provide the best results,” she said. “My research showed that for this type of limited, context-specific data, a simpler model can be more accurate, practical and easier for professionals to interpret and trust.”

Dowelani said the findings showed that quantity surveying firms could begin using historical project data more systematically to improve future estimates. The models could be used as decision-support tools during the conceptual stage of a project, allowing quantity surveyors to generate an initial prediction of total capital costs before applying their professional judgement to project-specific factors.

The research journey was not without challenges. Dowelani said collecting building cost data was particularly difficult because such information is commercially sensitive. She also had to develop machine-learning skills despite coming to the PhD with a background in quantity surveying rather than computer science.

“Learning [computer programming software] Python, understanding the algorithms and modelling, and figuring out how to apply them to construction cost data required a steep learning curve,” she said.

Managing her PhD alongside other responsibilities was another challenge. Dowelani said the support of her family helped her persevere, particularly after the death of her father in 2023.

“My mother and sisters believed in me even when I doubted myself,” she said. “Their love and encouragement gave me the strength to keep pushing forward, even during the difficult moments.”

She describes the achievement as the realisation of a dream she had held since childhood, adding that her parents instilled in her the belief that education was the key to a better future.

“This achievement is not just mine as the first black South African to earn a PhD in quantity surveying at UP,” Dowelani said. “It also belongs to my mother, Alufheli, who sacrificed so much to support my education. She was the first woman to obtain a diploma in Architecture from the former Technikon Northern Transvaal, now Tshwane University of Technology; her pioneering spirit has been my greatest inspiration.”

Professionally, the PhD has positioned Dowelani to contribute to the future of quantity surveying through research, teaching, mentorship and the practical application of digital technologies in construction. Her ambition is to become the first female professor in quantity surveying at UP. She plans to continue her research, develop new models and approaches, train the next generation of quantity surveyors, work with industry partners to implement the models in practice, and contribute to discussions about technology in construction cost management.

“I hope that my journey inspires other young black women to know that they belong in academic spaces, research, leadership and professions where they may not always see themselves represented,” she said.

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Huawei South Africa completed the sixth edition of the Women in Tech Digital Skills Training Programme, giving a cohort of 50 women three days of practical exposure in AI, cloud computing, 5G-Advanced, and emerging technologies.

Held under the theme “HERabytes: Small Business. Big Intelligence,” this year’s group included women business owners and government leaders from the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT), the Department of Employment and Labour (DoEL), and the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities (DWYPD). The programme focused on helping participants understand Artificial Intelligence and how it can be deployed to solve business challenges, improve productivity, and open up new opportunities.

The opening day began with an official welcome, followed by a session with Toby Shapshak from Stuff on the evolution of AI, how it is changing the way we work, and why change is unavoidable.

“We have to remember that we are the human intelligence and that AI is a parrot,” he said. “It may be impressive, game-changing technology, but we’re the reason it exists, and we’re still in the driving seat.”

Brand builder Heidi Brauer of heidibeeee&co delivered a talk on “The Gift of Gut in the Age of Data”, exploring the role of intuition alongside data in business and leadership decisions.

“What is it about a group of women in a room? There’s an energy, a sense of possibility, a feeling of being connected and powerful, quite unlike any other group,” she said. “I enjoyed sharing my thoughts on the importance of balancing facts with feels, and intuition with numbers, and tackling the challenges we face bringing this balance into a data-obsessed world.”

Technology for the real world

On the second day, participants learned about 5G-Advanced, cloud, and AI, and their practical applications for SMEs. Nimrod Smit, Huawei’s Principal Marketing Manager, used examples such as journalists broadcasting from a busy stadium and businesses delivering services in real time to demonstrate 5G applications.

“When we move on to 5.5G, there’s actually new capabilities that will be unlocked withing the core and radio networks of your mobile service provider. Speeds will increase tenfold from a normal 5G network. 5.5G + AI for business will be about compressing decision-making from days to milliseconds, turning data into instant automated action, and giving your business a nervous system a nervous system that is capable of thinking and adapting in real time.”

Siphiwe Matore, Senior Technical Business Development Manager at Huawei, showed attendees how small businesses can use cloud computing to increase capacity as demand grows and scale back when it falls. She also highlighted the importance of knowing where data is stored and urged businesses to ask questions about the technology they adopt.

As she put it, “Don’t think about, ‘Let me adopt cloud.’ Think, ‘What am I trying to achieve?’”

Participants also saw how AI can take on repetitive tasks and free up valuable time, with George Okello, Principal Training Engineer at Huawei, using recruitment as just one example to show how AI could shortlist CVs against a defined set of requirements.

He said, “AI doesn’t do all the work, but it helps you do your real work faster.”

Learning to lead in an AI economy

The final day moved to Henley Business School Africa, where participants looked at what leaders can do with the technology available to them.

Framed as “Women in Technology: Cloud and AI,” the session, led by Louise Claassen, Executive Fellow at Henley Business School Africa, combined hands-on exercises with interactive discussions about leadership.

Participants were introduced to blockchain, the Internet of Things (IoT), drones, geospatial mapping, satellite imagery, digital twins, extended reality (XR), and cloud.

“Businesses need to move quickly with AI while also putting the right guardrails in place to use it safely,” said Claassen. “There are two sides to this: understanding what AI can make possible, and being clear about the risks and responsibilities that come with it, because to excuse yourself from the conversation is not going to help at all.”

Government’s call

On the last day of the programme, Dineo Mmako, responsible for monitoring and evaluation at the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, delivered the closing keynote on behalf of Acting Director-General Dr Pravina Shukla-Elay, reflecting on South Africa’s “year of milestones,” with 70 years since the 1956 women’s march, 50 years since the 1976 youth uprising and 30 years since the adoption of the Constitution in 1996.

She urged participants to consider how they would use what they had learned and called on the women in attendance to think about inclusion in more practical terms.

“Digital inclusion cannot mean that everybody has a smartphone while ownership of the digital economy remains concentrated elsewhere. Participation must eventually mean ownership. It must mean intellectual property, enterprises, procurement, investment, and it must mean that women occupy the positions where decisions about technology and capital are made.”

Taking it back to the business

The programme wrapped up with a certification ceremony, where attendees received their certificates and gathered for a final networking moment. Over the three days, the sessions gave attendees a chance to put what they learned into practice and consider how they could use the technology in their own businesses.

Simmi Pillay, a participant from the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, said the sessions gave her a better understanding of how AI improves data use. “It’s quite amazing, the range, scope and depth of AI and how it articulates with our daily activities. I certainly have opened up my mind to the possibilities which are extremely important in terms of improving data and how it’s used for service delivery.”

Tarien Brown of Rich Rewards, a participant in the programme, saw AI in much the same way. “AI could fundamentally change my business by helping me make more informed decisions, challenge assumptions and identify opportunities I might otherwise miss. But I don’t see it replacing human judgement. I see it strengthening it. My experience through the Huawei Women in Tech programme reinforced that the real opportunity lies in combining technology with creativity, leadership and human insight. That combination, to me, is the competitive advantage of the future.”

Zama-Africa Mkhize from House of Coco, a boutique media agency, said the training is vital for her small business. “We are integrating AI into our systems, from proposal writing right up to implementation and streamlining our production lines. I also met a lot of like-minded women here, so I’m definitely taking that from today.”

“Our goal and vision are to reduce the digital gender divide and also encourage a digital-first mindset for entrepreneurs. As we close off this year’s Women’s Month, we are excited about what the future holds,” said Vanashree Govender, Senior PR Manager for Media and Communications at Huawei.

©Higher Education Media Services.

Coding and Robotics clubs, hands-on technology and future-focused skills are set to reach more Limpopo learners following the handover of Coding and Robotics kits to schools across all five districts of the province.

Supported by a partnership among educational institutions, government, and industry stakeholders, the initiative aims to equip Grade 8 and 9 learners with practical digital skills while preparing them for opportunities in an increasingly technology-driven world.

Schools from Capricorn, Waterberg, Vhembe, Mopani and Sekhukhune participated in the SpringBots Coding and Robotics kit handover event at Nirvana Primary School on 24 August 2026.

The initiative, aimed at expanding access to Coding and Robotics education in Limpopo, included the Limpopo Department of Education, SpringBots South Africa, the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT), University of Venda, the Phalaborwa Foundation and SARESA Talent Development Academy in a shared effort to strengthen STEM education and develop future-ready skills among young people.

Participating schools received Coding and Robotics kits and practical training on using the equipment. Teachers also received guidance on the rules, structure and format of the upcoming Coding and Robotics competition.

Dr Khuliso Sigama, Academic Manager at the Department of Computer Science, TUT Polokwane Campus, highlighted the importance of exposing learners to technology through practical learning opportunities. He said the initiative will equip learners with modern tools that support hands-on exploration while developing digital literacy, critical thinking and collaborative problem-solving skills.

“These kits represent more than just hardware; they are an investment in the next generation of engineers, coders and innovators,” he said.

The Limpopo Department of Education encourages schools to participate in Coding and Robotics activities to introduce learners to emerging technological skills and prepare them for the demands of the Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) and the broader STEM environment.

Schools are also encouraged to establish Coding and Robotics clubs where learners can explore technology in an informal and engaging environment while building innovation, creativity, collaboration, computational thinking and practical problem-solving skills.

TUT’s involvement reflects its commitment to strengthening relationships with schools and supporting the development of future-ready skills. The collaboration also demonstrates how partnerships between higher education institutions, government, industry and community organisations can create meaningful learning opportunities for young people.

By expanding access to practical tools, mentorship, and technology-focused learning experiences, the initiative is helping to develop a new generation of innovators equipped to engage confidently with technology and entrepreneurship to solve future challenges.

©Higher Education Media Services.

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Empiras Global unveiled AfriHack 2026, the third national innovation hackathon, run in partnership with 4OnPritchard, the Digital Skills for Jobs and Income II (DS4JI II) project, implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), and with UVU Africa.

AfriHack 2026 will be held in two cities: Johannesburg (4–6 September) at the CAPACITI Hub in Braamfontein, and Cape Town (18–20 September) at UVU Africa, Brickfield Canvas, in Woodstock.

The events will bring together young digital talent nominated by public and private universities, TVET colleges and digital skills programmes across South Africa, and young people not in employment, education or training (NEET), including those recruited through the DS4JI II project network.

The three-day event begins with a Corporate Day of keynote speeches, panels and an industry exhibition, paired with mock interviews where employers give direct feedback to students, providing a much-needed bridge between potential employers and youth in search of opportunities.

This is followed by a 24-hour hackathon in which teams work on a real business challenge co-designed with industry partners and supported by technical mentors. The event wraps up with presentations to an industry judging panel, an awards ceremony and a pathways session on enrolment, certification, scholarships and study-abroad opportunities.

THREE YEARS OF BUILDING A PIPELINE, NOT A COMPETITION

Since its inception, AfriHack has expanded from a one-city meetup into a two-city national programme that creates a clear pathway into the labour market. It has also expanded beyond traditional universities, to include TVET colleges and Digital Accelerator programmes.

Participants receive a certificate recognised by DS4JI II’s partner employers, priority referral to the DS4JI II Ikamva Digital programme, and direct contact with employers on Corporate Day. Catering for all three days is provided free to participants and their institutions.

“AfriHack, now in its third year, has grown not just in attendance but in the lasting impact on participants”, said Gugu Ntuli, CEO of Empiras Global. “The programme combines digital training with work-readiness; participants pitch to panels, undergo real employer interviews and tackle live business briefs, leading many to secure jobs that strengthen the country’s digital workforce.

Equally important, some attendees have launched their own businesses after mentorship from founders at AfriHack, producing young Africans who are both employable and able to create employment for others”, she concluded.

“South Africa’s financial services industry continues to lag in modernising the mundane, day-to-day operational tasks that quietly drain productivity across the sector — and too often, the solutions we adopt are imported rather than built for our own market realities. AfriHack Series 2026 gives us a rare opportunity to look inward instead of outward: to challenge young, digitally skilled South Africans to solve these everyday operational bottlenecks themselves, rather than defaulting to solutions developed elsewhere. We’re proud to support a platform that positions local youth talent not as consumers of financial technology, but as its future architects.”
Qiniso Ntuli, Managing Director, Royal Square Investments.

©Higher Education Media Services.

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