United Nations University (UNU) Rector Prof. Tshilidzi Marwala has been awarded an honorary doctorate by South Africa's University of Pretoria (UP). The distinction honours his significant global contributions as a world-renowned engineer, artificial intelligence (AI) researcher, and higher education leader.
Recognized as one of South Africa's most-prolific and most-cited researchers, Prof. Marwala has some 25 books and more than 500 articles to his name. He is a University of Pretoria alumnus, having completed his master's degree in mechanical engineering there in 1997.
In making the presentation, Prof. Wynand Steyn, Dean of UP’s Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology, lauded Prof. Marwala’s commitment to "using his engineering and leadership skills to help make South Africa, Africa and the world at large better place". He noted that "Prof Marwala’s ability to bridge academia, industry and government has made him a sought-after advisor and thought leader, contributing to policy development and strategic initiatives in the higher education sector”.
On receiving the honorary doctorate, Prof. Marwala credited UP with not only honing his technical skills, but also his thinking about innovation that serves society.
