The South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (SACNASP)is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Nompumelelo Obokoh - nee Masubelele (Pri.Sci.Nat) as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with effect from 1October 2022.Her appointment follows an extensive selection and recruitment process and the approval of the Minister of Higher Education,Science andInnovation, the Honourable Dr Blade Nzimande.
Dr Obokohis a Plant Molecular Biologist and holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge,United Kingdom.She is currently the Chairperson of the Board of the National Research Foundation (NRF) and was recently appointed as the Vice Chair of the Independent Science for Development Council (ISOC) for the Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers (CGIAR),the world's largest agricultural innovation partnership. She has also served as a Commissioner in the Presidential Commission on the Fourth Industrial Revolution within the agricultural sector.
For the past 20 years,Dr Obokohhas led multi-institutiona,l multi-disciplinary,and multi-national teams in Biotech research,development and innovation systems. In addition to extensive research experience in South Africa,she has worked and engaged in the agricultural innovation value-chain throughout Southern,East,and West Africa.She brings noteworthy leadership experience gained over the years as the Country Representative with the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) in Abuja,Nigeria,CEO of AfricaBio,a biotechnology stakeholder at the Innovation Hub. Divisional Head of the Innovation Support and Protection Division at the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission,and as an Executive (General Manager: Bioeconomy) at The Innovation Hub Management Company.
She has received several awards and accolades including the Mandela Cambridge Scholarship, Mandela Magdalene College Scholarship,Fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Society,best Biotech Communicator award from the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and she was featured in the 2020 Women's Report: Celebrating Black Women's Excellence and by the Art of Superwomen- A Woman Belongs: In The Biotechnology &Agricultural Industry.
On behalf of the Council of SACNASP,the Chairperson Prof Khathutshelo Nephawe,wishes to express his sincere gratitude to the Minister for his approval of the appointment of Dr Obokoh as the CEO of SACNASP.We are confident that through her strategic leadership and comprehensive understanding of the SACNASP vision,priorities,strategy and mandates,she will lead the organization in to its next strategic phase and strengthen its positioning within the National System of Innovation and enhance its contribution towards national priorities.