Professor Muthwa serves as the Chairperson of Universities South Africa [USAf], which endorses and expedites optimum conditions for universities to function effectively and contribute to social, cultural and economic improvement. Before her time at Nelson Mandela University, Muthwa acted as the Director General of the Eastern Cape Provincial Government [2004 and 2010]. She was also previously appointed as the Director of the Fort Hare Institute of Government.
Professor Sibongile Muthwa
Professor Sibongile Muthwa, Vice-Chancellor of Nelson Mandela University, South Africa, completed her PhD at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, as well as an MSc in Development Policy and Planning, from London School of Economics and Political Science. With a distinguished career, both in South Africa and internationally, she has worked in academia and development and public sector institutions. As the very first woman Vice-Chancellor appointed at Nelson Mandela University,
She is deeply committed to gender justice, social inclusion and active democratic participation, and accordingly serves on a number of Boards and advisory structures, including from 2014 as a Commissioner of the Financial and Fiscal Commission.
As we all know, our sector and country is at a crossroads. Professor Muthwa’s passion for education stems from a simple childhood experience - learning to read and write. “My love of reading came from my grandfather who had taught himself to read. My father was a teacher and my mother a nurse, but growing up we spent most of our time with our grandparents and I was particularly close to
50 | Public Sector Leaders | August 2021
my grandfather”, she says. “My journey has inspired my commitment to contribute to changing the trajectory of every young person whose life I have the privilege to touch.” Professor Muthwa’s thoughts on Tertiary Education in SA: “As we all know, our sector and country is at a crossroads. As a higher education institution we need to be acutely attuned to the issues of our country, including poverty and inequality, and to be committed to improving the lives and educational opportunities of the marginalised in particular. The calls for free education for all those who cannot afford it have made this task urgent and critical… We will continue to strive, with great pride and humility, to live up to our responsibility of leading the only university in the world that carries Nelson Mandela’s name”.
Education •
PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London
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MSc in Development Policy and Planning from the London School of Economics
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BA Honours from Wits University
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BA in Social Work from the University of Fort Hare
