Professor Mlambo is an NRF C1 rated researcher (Jan 2021 to Dec 2026), having previously held a C3 rating (2015 to 2020). UMP presented him the NRF Researcher of the Year award, which is given to researchers who receive an NRF rating for the first time, retain their NRF rating through a re-evaluation by the NRF, and improve their NRF rating through a re-evaluation by the NRF during the reporting year.
Speaking after the event, Professor Mlambo said: “It’s exciting and rewarding that the University recognises our work because we spend many sleepless nights trying to do the work. Even on weekends. It doesn’t just end with executing the research activities, you also have to focus on training students – read their work and provide them with the necessary guidance.
Most of our research outputs come from the work of research students. So obviously, that means you must provide quality supervision and make sure that they are doing the right things in the labs and so on.”
Professor Mlambo is a committed researcher and animal scientist specializing in the natural sciences. His research on the Sustainable Animal Production for Human Health, Environmental Stewardship & Food Security, focuses on the replacement of antibiotics in animal production, reduction of enteric methane emissions and low-cost alternative dietary ingredients for food animals.
“Our research focus is on sustainable animal production. To this end, we design and evaluate production practices that protect the environment, protect human health, and which also make a profit for farmer,” he adds, noting that there are many challenges that face animal agriculture.
“We are designing nutritional strategies that resolve the challenge of environmental pollution caused by animal production. We also have a problem where animal products are said to cause problems in human health,” he explains.
According to the NRF, Professor Mlambo is, "an established researcher with a sustainable recent record of productivity in his field; his peers recognise that he has produced a body of quality work and demonstrates the ability to conceptualise problems and apply research methods to investigate them.”
Successful journey
For one to become successful, Professor Mlambo advises that they need to have a strong work ethic.
“It’s very important to be internally driven. There are many times when things don’t go according to plan, but it is important to persevere, remain enthusiastic and work even harder.”
Besides research work, some of Professor Mlambo’s commitments at UMP include being the chair of the Faculty Postgraduate Studies Committee, member of the Executive Committee of Senate, member of the Animal Research Ethics Committee, and a member of the Institutional Committee for the Evaluation of Applications for NRF Rating and other Grant Funding Organisations.
Professor Mlambo has successfully mentored three postdoctoral fellows and supervised 14 PhD and 29 MSc students while producing 123 peer-reviewed journal articles and three book chapters.
His former students have gone on to become influential animal scientists in their own right. He is also Co-Editor-in-Chief for Animal Feed Science and Technology – a discipline-leading journal published by Elsevier with a five-year impact factor (IF) of 3.247.
“I am also an Associate Editor for the South African Journal of Animal Science (IF = 0.60), and a member of the Pool of International Experts for the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) and an invited Expert Advisor for the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS).”
Professor Mlambo also serve as an external examiner (PhD, MPhil, and MSc theses) for various universities in South Africa (the University of Fort Hare, University of KwaZulu-Natal, University of Pretoria, University of Witwatersrand, Stellenbosch University, University of South Africa, and University of Johannesburg) Botswana (Botswana University of Agriculture & Natural Resources and University of Botswana) and the Caribbean (University of the West Indies), among many others.
@ Story by Lisa Thabethe. Pictures @ChrisplPhoto.