Vice-Chancellor’s Report on Management and Administration

It gives me great joy to reflect on the year 2021. As ViceChancellors, we all thought 2020 was extraordinary, only to realise that 2021 would bring different and further challenges to the fore.

As a sector and as the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), we can all be proud of what we have achieved. There were so many complexities to deal with: online graduation ceremonies; online staff long-service awards, meetings, classes; sustaining long-standing stakeholder engagements and relationships. It once again showed me how wonderful human beings are, even in the face of adversity. They are resilient, adaptable, creative, problem solving orientated, and have the ability to reinvent, recreate and reimagine.

During the last two years, I could not forget the words of Charles Dickens in his book, A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

The COVID period can be thought of as being one with various tales. I am proud to say that CPUT used it as a time for deep introspection. We scrutinised our practices, our relationships, our strengths and our weaknesses. What we realised was that when at our most vulnerable, human interactions, caring, showing empathy, and sharing sorrows and loss do matter. As an innovative university, we used this time to reflect on how efficient our administrative processes are, and where we can and should do better; how we can have meaningful and regular engagements with all our stakeholders – with students certainly being a very important component. I am gratified to say that we have started a culture where students and Management engage timeously, collectively trying to find answers to what matters most. I applaud CPUT’s Student Leadership for playing a critical role in stabilising our campuses, enhancing our brand, and taking pride in the qualifications they obtain.

As always, I cannot pass up an opportunity to emphasise the importance of an ethical university administration, with all its various functions and practices. Our Combined Assurance Model is highly valued by the CPUT Council; and Internal Audit, Enterprise Risk Management and Compliance are key drivers in ensuring that CPUT will not fall prey to procurement malpractices, nepotism, or any other form of corruption. Each internal report is verified, and forms part of the Executive Members’ Key Performance Areas.

I want to believe that CPUT has turned a corner in becoming a stable university, with good practices, relevant qualifications, and research that has impact and improves the lives of many poor families. That will be our focus in the years to come: being humane, having impact, and striving to be One Smart CPUT.

Vice-Chancellor Prof NC Nhlapo