University Council

Prof Thenjiwe Meyiwa is the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mpumalanga with effect from 1 October 2025. Professor Meyiwa has a wealth of experience and expertise in higher education, having served as Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Postgraduate Studies, Innovation and Commercialisation at the University of South Africa from 2018 to 2025. Prior to this position, Professor Meyiwa served as Institutional Registrar at the Durban University of Technology from 2014 to 2018. She held the position of Research Director: Education and Skills Development at Human Science Research Council from 2012 to 2014. Professor Meyiwa has served in various academic roles, including that of Research Professor at Walter Sisulu University from 2010 to 2011, and was Director at the university of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Gender Studies for a decade.

Prof Meyiwa holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Zululand, a Bachelor of Arts Honours Degree, a Master of Arts, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Feminist Oral Studies from the former University of Natal (UKZN). Prof Meyiwa also holds a three-year teaching Diploma from the former Indumiso College of Education (DUT) and a Master of Commerce Degree in Organisational and Systems Management from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

Meyiwa has served and is a member of various parastatals, community, and civil society organisations, such as the Rural Women’s Movement where she is the Advisory Board member, the National Heritage Council, and the South African National Heraldry Council where she served as its chairperson; to name but a few. Aside graduating over 40 postgraduate students and co-authoring several books, she has presented numerous conference papers at national and international forums, as well as published research articles, book chapters and books. Her areas of research interest broadly encompass contemporary human behavioural patterns, with a focus on the cultural constructions of gender, self-study, indigenous knowledges, and the impact of HIV/AIDS on parenting.

Mr. Mark Schormann possesses extensive qualifications and a diverse professional background. He completed his Master's in Technology Entrepreneurship from the University of Maryland College Park in 2018, summa cum laude. Additionally, he is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) which has a strong emphasis on Finance, Economics, and Corporate Governance. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Natal in 1987 and a Bachelor of Commerce with majors in Economics, Computer Science, and Statistics from UNISA in 2000.

Mark has a strong track record of continuous learning and has completed various short courses, including Social Network Analysis from the University of Michigan and Financial Markets from Yale University, among many others.

In terms of his employment history, Mark has held notable positions. He currently serves as the Chief Product and Technology Officer for Eurostep Digital and before that was CTO for Mi-C3 a software company with operations across Africa, the Middle East and Europe.  Prior to that he was Project Manager and Team Leader at Makhosikati Trading (Pty) Ltd, overseeing the implementation a portion of SA-Connect - a wireless network project that provides internet services to rural schools and government facilities. He was also a part-time Lecturer at the University of Mpumalanga, where he taught courses in Financial Management, Programming, and Networking.

Mark also has experience as a Project Leader at Bardolino Consulting, where he developed a comprehensive system for the Risk-Based Inspection of Vodacom towers in Southern Africa. He served as Chairman of MPowerFM (Pty) Ltd, leading the company through various challenges, and played a pivotal role in its Business Rescue process.

Furthermore, he has a rich history as the founder-owner and General Manager of SoftNet Internet Services cc, where he established and managed an Internet Service Provider and expanded services into cloud-based technologies. Mark's career journey also includes founding MKH Technologies cc, specializing in GIS and software development.

Notably, Mark Schormann contributed to scientific research in cloud physics and airborne data acquisition and published several papers in international journals on the topcis. He is deeply engaged in community service and leadership, serving on various boards and committees related to education, environmental conservation, and business development.

Mark Schormann is an experienced leader with a passion for entrepreneurship and community involvement, making a meaningful impact in both professional and community spheres.
 

Prof Moses Mbewe originates from the Nkomazi region of the Province of Mpumalanga, in South Africa.  He received his early education in the same area up to high school.  He furthered his education by obtaining his BSc (4 years) in Biology at Texas Southern University, in the USA, graduating with Summa cum Laude status in 1989.  He did his postgraduate studies (Masters and PhD) at the University of Cambridge, Department of Genetics, in the UK from 1991 to 1994 in Microbial Genetics and Molecular Biology.  He went on to become the Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in Microbiology at the University of Cape Town, South Africa in 1995 to 96.  He worked as senior lecturer teaching Microbiology at the University of the North, which became University of Limpopo from 1996 to 2004 and 2012 to 2015. During the second stint at UL, he served as Head of Department of Water and Sanitation and Acting Director of the School of Computer and Mathematical Sciences.  He also worked at the Northwest University as an Associate Professor and Director of the School of Agricultural Sciences from 2005 to 2011, teaching Microbiology. 

He assumed his duties at the University Mpumalanga as Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Sciences at the beginning of 2016 and served in this role up to June 2023.  He has served as Thrust Leader for Biotechnology at the University of Limpopo, as Board member of the Agricultural Research Council, South African Society for Microbiology, Northwest Nguni Cattle Development Trust, Limpopo Agriculture MEC Advisory Council, and ordinary member of the World Economic Forum 2001-2004.  He served as Member and Chairperson of the National Task Force for the Containment of Polio in Labs (NTF), a ministerial advisory committee for the National Department of Health from 2007 to 2023, and Council on Higher Education (HEQC) as Programme Evaluator.  He is, further, serving as a Council and EXCO member of the University of Mpumalanga Council.

He has since been appointed Deputy Vice Chancellor: Post Graduate Studies, Engagement and Planning (DVC: PSEP) beginning of July 2023.  In his new role, he will be responsible for Postgraduate Studies, Engagement, Continuing Education and Student and Graduate Placement, Alumni Affairs and Convocation, Institutional Planning, HEMIS and Monitoring and Evaluation.

Prof Aldo Stroebel
Prof Aldo Stroebel is the inaugural Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research, Innovation and Internationalisation, appointed on 1 July 2023. The portfolio provide strategic leadership for all aspects related to research, innovation and partnerships, and executive management of Library and Information Services and Institutional Centres and Institutes.
 
A recognised scholar in sustainable agriculture, Prof Stroebel was elected as a founding member of the SA Young Academy of Science (SAYAS). He is a Foreign Fellow of the Ugandan National Academy of Sciences, Senior Fellow of the Pan-African Scientific Research Council, and an Honorary Scholar at the International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria. He was a former Visiting Fellow at Cornell University’s Institute for African Development (IAD).
 
He had a comprehensive and globally diverse higher education training profession: BSc- and Hons-degrees (University of Pretoria); Masters in International Agricultural Development (University of Ghent, Belgium); PhD in Sustainable Agriculture (Joint Programme between the University of the Free State and Cornell University, USA); Postdoctoral research (Wageningen University, The Netherlands). Professional training courses have been completed in Research Management in Australia, in Gender Programming in The Netherlands, Diversity Leadership in the USA, and Corporate Governance in South Africa.
 
Prof Stroebel serves as Board Member of the Water Research Commission, as Co-Chair of the Australia-Africa University Network (AAUN), as a member of University South Africa's (USAf) Research and Innovation Strategy Group (RISG), as member of iThemba LABS's Scientific Technical Advisory Committee (STAC), and as Steering Committee member of the National Institute for Theoretical and Computational Sciences (NITheCS).
 
Dr Stroebel joined UMP from the National Research Foundation (NRF) where has was Executive Director Strategic Partnerships (2013-2023), with demonstrated success in developing a comprehensive suite of significant partnership and collaborative engagements for the NRF, with high levels of resource leveraging, contributing to and positioning South Africa’s National System of Innovation (NSI). Prior to the NRF, he worked at the University of the Free State (2003-2013) as Senior Lecturer; Associate Professor in the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture; Founding Director of International Affairs; and Director International Academic and Transformation Projects in the Office of the Vice-Chancellor and Rector. He was involved in the designing and implementation of numerous policy, organisational and development systems and strategies for the management and mentoring of multicultural teams, and establishing and guiding multi-sectoral partnerships and networks in support of research and innovation. During 1998-2002, he was a researcher and lecturer at the Postgraduate School of Agriculture and Rural Development, University of Pretoria, and Coordinator and Researcher of the Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), a WK Kellogg Foundation-funded initiative in six countries.
 

Prof Mashudu Davhana-Maselesele originates from Ha-Davhana, a rural village in the Limpopo Province. She began her career as a nurse and midwife at the then Venda Nursing College, subsequently working as a Professional Nurse at Donald Fraser Hospital. Later, she transitioned to a teaching role at the Venda Nursing College. Throughout her academic journey, she earned various qualifications, including a BA(Cur) in Nursing Education and Community Health Nursing Science (UNISA), Honours BA(Cur) in Nursing Education (UNISA), Diploma in Primary Health Care (University Johannesburg) with cum Laude, Masters in Nursing Education (UNISA), and a PhD in Programme Development (University of Johannesburg). Additionally, she pursued postdoctoral studies at the University of California (Los Angeles, USA) with a focus on trauma research, specifically Gender-Based Violence. She also did a Postgraduate Diploma in International Research Ethics in Southern Africa (IRENSA) at UCT in 2007.

Her academic career started at the University of Venda between 1998 and 2007, where she progressed from Junior Lecturer to Senior Lecturer, teaching nursing programmes from undergraduate to postgraduate levels. Subsequently, she spent a decade at North-West University (NWU), holding key academic leadership positions, namely; Executive Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Science and Technology, Vice Rector for Teaching/Learning and Research, and Campus Rector of Mafikeng.  She later moved to the Eastern Cape Province where she served as Rector of the Mthatha Campus at Walter Sisulu University for two years before becoming Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Academic Affairs and Research for two years.

During her tenure at NWU, she played a pivotal role in raising funds for capacity development, establishing research collaborations, and creating doctoral sandwich programmes for young academics. Her research primarily focuses on Gender-Based Violence and vicarious trauma among caregivers, particularly in the context of HIV and AIDS. As a passionate advocate of Problem-Based Learning, she has conducted training on the use of PBL as a teaching strategy in collaboration with Mc Master University (Canada).  She has supervised and co-supervised 24 Masters and Doctoral candidates and published articles in accredited journals nationally and internationally. She also mentored Post-Doctoral Fellows in collaboration with the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). Presently, she is actively involved in a 5-year project for Sustainable Academic Capacity Building for Excellence through Research and Training (SACERT) Programme developing research capacity amongst young academics pursuing their doctoral studies in South Africa, collaborating with the following institutions: UCLA (USA), NWU, SU, UCT, UL, UNIVEN,WSU and HSRC.
 
She served as Editor-in-Chief of CURATIONIS, an accredited journal, and was a member of the South African Nursing Council (SANC) for a decade. She has been involved in programme development and reviews nationwide through participation in the Council on Higher Education (CHE) activities.
 
She has since been appointed as Deputy Vice Chancellor: Teaching and Learning (DVC: T/L) in January 2024. She will be responsible for intellectual and strategic leadership in the areas of Teaching and Learning.

Professor Modimowabarwa holds a doctorate in Administration from the University of Pretoria and received a Certificate in International Economic and Financial Negotiations from the International Institute of Public Administration in France. He is a recipient of the 2022 Star of Discovery Global Award, WHITRAP under the auspices of UNESCO.
 
He is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Management, Commerce and Law at the University of Venda and former Divisional Strategic Lead and Research Director at the Human Sciences Research Council. Prof Kanyane currently serves as a member of the University of Mpumalanga Council as a ministerial appointee since 2020. In the Council, he chairs Strategic Committee and serves on HR and Remuneration Committees as a member.
 
He is a renowned researcher in South Africa who has an extensive range of experience in governance, public ethics, accountability, public finance, service delivery and intergovernmental relations within the broader field of Public Administration. Professor Kanyane participated in BRICS activities as SABTT Chair of the Political and Economic Governance Cluster and various fourth industrial revolution discussions.
 
Prof Kanyane reached over 100-mark participation in local and international conference activities and produced over 100 scientific academic and research outputs including those in peer-reviewed and accredited journals as a social science research scientist.
 
Prof Kanyane scooped two HSRC Senior Research Excellence Awards in 2015 and 2018 and has extensive experience in public administration and a speciality in governance for more than twenty years.

Sibusiso Ntshebe is a Practicing Advocate and Council Member at the University of Mpumalanga (UMP). He obtained his LLB Degree and Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). He holds two Master’s Degrees, an LLM (Corporate) Degree from the University of South Africa (Unisa) and Master in Business Administration from the UKZN.

He was admitted as an attorney of the High Court of South Africa in 2006. His academic background in law and business administration affords him the ability to meaningfully contribute to both the legal practice and the business arena.

Sibusiso has extensive experience in the legal fraternity spanning over 18 years in various capacities, including serving as legal advisor, practicing as an attorney under the name Ntshebe & Company and subsequently as an advocate. As an advocate, Sibusiso is a member of the KwaZulu Natal Society of Advocates and has served as an Executive Committee Member of the Advocates for Transformation – KZN.

His engagement experience spans over a wide range of industries/business sectors which include Aviation, Mining, Construction & Engineering, Energy & Power, Conservation, Waste Management, Health Industry, Industrial and Manufacturing. He has sat in numerous Boards such as The Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Board, Prasa Board of Control, Autopax Board, Kagosano board of Trustees, Maxiprest Tyres Board.

His last employment was with Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Africa as a Chief Corporate Officer, building Medupi and Kusile power stations. Prior to that he worked for Anglo American Platinum as Head of Transformation. He previously also held Director Positions with several companies like Pikitup, a Johannesburg City’s Waste Management Company, and Maxiprest Tyres, a Bridgestone South Africa subsidiary. Also worked for SANParks as HoD Human Resources and at SAA in numerous senior positions.

He holds a PhD in International Commercial Law from Selinus University, Italy. A Master’s Degree in Commercial Law from Salford University in the UK, a BA and a BA Honor’s Degree in Industrial Psychology from UNW. Has done DPLR with Unisa School of Business Leadership. He also holds various secondary qualifications.

LEBAKENG Josiah is Professor at the Thabo Mbeki African School of Public and International Affairs, UNISA. He heads the focus area of security and intelligence studies. He studied sociology at the American University in Cairo, Egypt, urban sociology at University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania human services administration at Springfield College, Massachusetts, USA and obtained a doctorate from the University of the North (now University of Limpopo). He previously taught at the University of Limpopo, Vista University (now University of Johannesburg)

He worked at the South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York during South Africa’s non-permanent tenure in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) from February 2007 to December 2008 and February 2011 to December 2012 and continued with the United Nations General Assembly in 2013 to 2014. In November 2017 to November 2018, he was Head of Intelligence for SADC Preventative Mission in Lesotho (SAPMIL).Professor Lebakeng is author of an autobiography titled They Blunted Us: June 16, Exile and Homecoming (Ziable Publisher, 2021).

Prof. Funso Raphael Kutu is a trained agronomy-soil scientist with extensive research and teaching expertise. He currently serves as Head of School at the School of Agricultural Sciences. He earned a BSc. Honours in Agriculture, MSc in Agronomy (Soil Science) and a PhD from the University of Ibadan in Nigeria. Prof. Kutu began his academic career as a Teaching Assistant at the University of Ibadan. He later joined Ahmadu Bello University's Division of Agricultural Colleges in Zaria, Nigeria, as a Lecturer II and was promoted to Lecturer I after three years. He also served as Head of the Agricultural Technology Programme and Coordinator of the 'Students' Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES)' program in the same university. He worked in various institutions in South Africa before joining the University of Mpumalanga in 2018. These include the University of Fort Hare as a postdoctoral researcher, Agricultural Research Council - Grain Crops Institute (ARC-GCI), Potchefstroom as a Senior Researcher, Soil Scientist-Plant Nutrition; University of Limpopo as a Senior Lecturer in Soil Science and Associate Professor (Soil Science) in 2012. He worked briefly as a Team Manager in the Soil Health and Remediation programme at the Agricultural Research Council, Institute for Soil, Climate and Water (ARC-ISCW), Pretoria before joining the North-West University (NWU), Mafikeng Campus in August 2014 as a Professor of Agronomy. He was the team leader for the Plant Production research sub-group in the Food Security and Safety Niche Area, and Programme Leader for the Crop Science Programme in the School of Agricultural Sciences.

The theme for his research is “Improving sustainability and agro-ecosystem resilience through innovative soil fertility and nutrients management practices, and improved soil health for food and nutrition security”. His research works encompass Soil fertility evaluation and management, improved agronomic practices, cropping systems, nutrient dynamics in soil-plant systems, soil-crop-microbes interaction, microbial inoculants, compost science and utilization for soil health and crop yield improvement, and Green Chemistry. He served as Associate Editor in Agronomy Journal (USA) and currently serves as Chairperson of the Mpumalanga Agricultural Research Committee (MARC) on behalf of the Mpumalanga Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environmental Affairs (DARDLEA). He is a member of the Water Research Commission (WRC) project reference group. He equally serves as external examiner to many universities as well as assessor for promotion to professorship and associate professorship (readership) in several universities. He has published widely in accredited journals mostly internationally, and graduated Master and Doctoral students. He is a registered member of several professional bodies including the South African Council of Natural Scientific Profession (SACNASP), the Soil Science Society of South Africa, the Soil Science Society of Nigeria, the Soil Science Society of America and the Agronomy Society of America. He is a C2 rated scientist by the National Research Foundation of South Africa.
 

Prof Estelle Boshoff is an Industrial Psychologist and Head of the School of Development Studies, including the Bachelor in Commerce, Bachelor of Laws (LLB), Bachelor of Development Studies, and Bachelor of Administration programmes at the University of Mpumalanga (UMP). She serves on Senate; the Executive Committee of the Teaching and Learning Committee; the Information Services Committee of the Senate, the Quality Assurance Committee, and the Students' Appeal Committee at the University.

Her research projects include: The relationship between work stress and organisational climate among UFS, Library personnel (Honours script, 1997), the  relationship between work stress and personality factors among  non-commissioned officers in the South African Defence Force (Masters dissertation, 2001). She received her PhD in 2010 under the topic: The Development of a Work Ethics Questionnaire based on a Holistic Philosophical Model of Ethical Decision-Making.

Some of her accolades include an award for the best paper from the Clute Institute for Academic Research at the 2008 Business and Economics Conferences (EABR) and Teaching and Education Conferences (TLC), in Rothenberg, Germany. She also received the best paper award from the Clute Institute for Academic Research for a paper delivered at the 2009 Business and Economics Conference (EABR) in Prague, Czech Republic.
 
Prof Boshoff is also Chair of the Research Ethics Committee at UMP, and Chair of the Research Ethics Committee of the Mpumalanga Provincial Government. Her fields of specialization are Research Methodology, Human Resource Management, Work Ethics, and Gender-based Violence.

 

Ms Ncumisa Brenda Mfihlo has been in the Information Technology industry for over 26 years, holding several positions. During her career, she obtained vast experience in IT Strategy and Planning, IT Operations, IT Service Management, IT Project and Portfolio Management, IT Financial Management, and IT Governance and Compliance, in the IT Services industry, Telecommunications, Road Transport (freight), Airline and in Education Industries. Brenda held various IT senior management and executive management roles in different corporate organizations including a CIO role. As an extensive traveler worldwide, she has gained knowledge and experience in the provision of global technology solutions that are relevant and aligned to corporate strategy, supporting key strategic objectives such as customer experience, growth strategies, partnerships, and alliances.
 
She is a good communicator, and a leader that influences, inspires, and collaborates with her teams to ensure that everyone working with her is empowered and supported to excel in their performance. In any new environment, she seeks to understand the business levers that drive the company’s growth and profitability and align those with the business strategy. She is a highly independent individual who thrives on excellent performance.She has achieved several professional and academic qualifications with two fundamental qualifications: MBA from Henley Business School and an International Executive Development Programme (NQF Level 8) from Gordon Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria. She is currently pursuing her second master’s degree in Energy Leadership at Wits Business School. During her career, she had the opportunity to serve on the following committees and sub-committees within the organizations; Executive Committee level, Bid Adjudication Committees, IT & Business Steering Committees, and IT Governance & Compliance committees. She also served on the Customer Advisory Board for SITA Aero for 4 years – this is an international structure connecting Airline and Airport executives with Aviation Industry Experts.

Dr Adv. Makhura is an allrounder professional in possession of Phd in Information Science and LLB. He started his career as a lecturer at then Modjajdi College of Education. Dr Adv. Makhura is an admitted Advocate of the High Court of South Africa with special interests in the Bill of Rights. Apart from legal profession, he is a qualified professional in the following disciplines i.e. Teaching and Enterprise Information Management. Dr Adv. Makhura gained corporate governance experience from following organizations as a Board Member i.e. Limpopo Department of Sports, Arts and Culture as a member of advisory council in Limpopo Library and Information Services Council; Member of National Council of Library and Information Service (NCLIS); Chairperson of the National Archives Advisory Council; Member of National Heritage Council (NHC) Board; Chairperson of the SABS Technical Committee in Document Management; Member of Mangosuthu University of Technology Council; Member of National Library of South Africa Board.
 
Apart from cooperate governance, Dr Adv. Makhura is an academic with more than 5 peer-reviewed published articles. He served as a supervisor for Masters and Phd students at University of South Africa.
 
Professionally, Dr Adv. Makhura is a member of Legal Practice Council (LPC), South African Society of Archivists etc.
 

Mr Moses Sithole is a Lecturer in the School of Agricultural Sciences, FANS, UMP. He recently graduated from the UMP Prestigious and Flagship Programme, the Academic Talent Stewardship Programme (ATSP), where he served as both an ATSP Fellow and an Associate Lecturer. He is an Agricultural Extension Education Specialist by training, with a Master of Agriculture in Agricultural Extension, Bachelor of Agriculture Honours degree (Cum Laude), Bachelor of Agriculture in Agricultural Extension and Rural Resources Management degree, all obtained at the University of Mpumalanga. He is currently pursuing PhD studies in Agriculture, with research focus on the Cost-Benefits of Livelihood Diversification Strategies for Poverty Alleviation among Smallholder Farmers. His research focus is on Agricultural Extension Education, Natural Resources Conservation, Rural Development, Effective and Efficient use of Rural Resources, Food Security, Poverty Alleviation, Rural Economic Development and Climate Change in the context of Smallholder Farmers and Rural Farming Families. And as an emerging researcher, has published 19 peer reviewed papers.
 
He is currently the Chairperson of the Engagement Committee in the School of Agricultural Sciences, Member of the FANS Engagement Committee, and Member of the Co-Curricular Awards Adjudication Committee within the UMP. Beyond his Teaching responsibilities at the University, He is actively involved in the First Year Experience (FYE) Programme and supervises about 13 (in 2025) FYE Mentors (Seniors Students – LLB) who play a huge role in the transition of the First Year Students within the UMP. He serves in Council now as the Academic Representative, after having previously served in Council during his tenure as SRC President of the UMP in the 2017 academic year. When he was in the SRC he served not only in Council, but also in the UMP SENATE, Institutional Forum, Transformation Committee, and the Student Support Services Committee. He served as the Deputy President of the UMP Convocation and was elected to represent the UMP Convocation in Council in 2021. He served as a Tutor, Mentor, Health Peer Mentor for several years, which served as a strong foundation for experience gained over the years.

Busisiwe (Busi) Kubheka is currently the Collateral Management Capability Head for a leading blue-chip company and sits on various boards that span across mining, education and pharmaceuticals. Busi’s experience cuts across infrastructure, mining, global financial services, data and technology platform builds, specialising in commercial and emergent business models. She has been an executive in both blue chip and emerging organisations within South Africa.
 
Busi holds B Com degree, International Executive Development Programme, Data Science Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma in Corporate Law, Diploma in Management and a Prince II Project Management Certificate. Over and above her busy schedule, Busi is a wife and a proud mother of two sons and has keen interests in reading, fitness, traveling, and cooking.