Namibia (Namibia University of Science and Technology) Nust Awarded For Organisational Growth In Research
Represented by the University’s Directorate of Research, Innovation and Partnerships (DRIP), NUST received an accolade for Organisational Growth in Research Management at the Southern African Research and Innovation Management Association (SARIMA) 2022 Awards Ceremony recently. The awards ceremony formed part of the 2022 SARIMA conference that was held in Johannesburg, South Africa, an event that attracted emerging and seasoned research managers from approximately 28 countries and 50 institutions.
KEEPING NUST ON THE MAP: Dr Lisho Mundia, Director of Research and Innovation, Ministry of Higher Education, Technology and Innovation (fifth from right), pictured with the NUST team, celebrating the big moment in Johannesburg, South Africa.
KEEPING NUST ON THE MAP: Dr Lisho Mundia, Director of Research and Innovation, Ministry of Higher Education, Technology and Innovation (fifth from right), pictured with the NUST team, celebrating the big moment in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The president of SARIMA, Dr Andrew Bailey congratulated the team and highlighted that this is the first time this accolade is awarded. Dr Colin Stanley, the Acting Vice-Chancellor of Research, Innovation and Partnerships said that “receiving such recognition amongst institutions that have been in the education sector for several decades is indeed remarkable and speaks volumes.”
Dr Anna Matros-Goreses, the Executive Director of DRIP, who is also vice-president for research management of SARIMA, emphasised that “this award speaks to the promotion of a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, underpinned by a well- established research base which is aligned to leading the next generation of impactful researchers.”
FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
Established in 2012 as the Project Services Unit (PSU), the department started out with one staff member. Fast-forward to 2022, the PSU now has more human resources and has been renamed to the Directorate of Research, Innovation and Partnerships (DRIP), in line with its new mandate.
This has paved the way for the Directorate to gradually expand its efforts to continuously facilitate project development and management of grants across the Institution, in addition to expousing an inter-disciplinary and multi-sectoral approach to maximise research impact, and foster innovation and mutually beneficial partnerships. Additionally, DRIP, under he postgraduate unit, will now lead the University’s postgraduate student and researcher development across the research pipeline within different organisational settings.
SMALL TEAM, BIG IMPACT
At the conference, which also marked the 20th SARIMA anniversary, the NUST staff presented engaging abstracts aligned to research management themes. The topics ranged from Research Monitoring and Evaluation (Victoria Shipanga); Science Communication (Kuda Brandt); Postgraduate Education Needs (Rennie Munyayi); Grant Funding (Rufaro Musiyarira); Private Equity Financing (Christine Aitana); to International Research Collaborations (Bas Rijnen). The main purposes of research are to inform action, gather evidence for theories, and contribute to developing knowldge for nation building.
The SARIMA Excellence Awards were initiated in 2014 to celebrate excellence in Research and Innovation Management in Southern Africa, and aim to encourage growth and achievement in the field.