The University of Mpumalanga (UMP) in partnership with the Department of Science, Technology, and Innovation (DSTI) will host the second
G20 Research and Innovation Working Group (RIWG), the G20 Initiative on Bioeconomy (GIB) and a meeting of Oceans20 during 25 to 28 May 2025 at the Mbombela Campus.
The 2
nd RIWG meeting will discuss progress with the 10 deliverables that were agreed to during the 1
st RIWG meeting held at the University of the Free State in February 2025, and a virtual follow-up meeting held during 9 - 10 April 2025. The 2
nd G20 RIWG Meeting will also discuss the draft G20 Research and Innovation Ministerial Declaration.
The 2
nd RIWG, GIB and Oceans20 meetings coincide with Africa Day commemorations, and UMP and the Department will host a G20 Africa STI Leaders Dialogue and Africa Day Celebrations on 25 May. The dialogue will cover the role of artificial intelligence in the implementation of the African Union's Science, Technology, and Innovation Strategy (STISA-2034). The event will be attended by various African country delegates. UMP is proud to welcome the esteemed Prof Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela, SARChI Chair and the recent Templeton Prize Laureate from Stellenbosch University as the keynote speaker.
UMP has developed rapidly in terms of research capacity development, research disciplines, national and international research partnerships, and research outputs. The University conducts research that contributes to local, regional, national, and global sustainability, and has recently announced a Research Chair, in collaboration with Benjamin Raymond Oppenheimer Trust, in Biodiversity Conservation. Focusing on research since its establishment has placed UMP in an advantaged position among the institutions of higher learning despite it being one of the two new universities established in post-apartheid South Africa.
The university’s current research areas of interest include the Just Energy Transition, ICT for development, youth development and empowerment, environmental and socio-economic sustainability, biodiversity conservation and development, early childhood development, education and training, ethics and governance, and postharvest management and food security.