Rate My Professor Chris Nhlapo

Professor Chris Nhlapo is the Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). He previously served as Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Technology, Innovation and Partnerships at CPUT and as Acting Vice-Chancellor. Prior to these roles, he headed the Department of Chemistry at the University of the Free State and held senior positions at higher education institutions and science councils, including the National Research Foundation where he contributed to building research capacity through national and international strategic partnerships. He holds a BSc in Chemistry and Mathematics, an MSc in Chemistry, and an HEd from the University of Limpopo, as well as a PhD in Chemistry from the University of the North West. He has completed post-doctoral training in subject-specific fields and in research management and technology transfer.

Prof Nhlapo has trained, supervised, and lectured across South African higher education institutions. He has presented numerous papers nationally and internationally and is recognized in the field of international research management. He is a Fellow of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) and has worked within its Commission IV on IUPAC projects. At CPUT, he initiated the Research, Technology and Innovation portfolio through the development of the RTI Blueprint and supporting strategic documents and frameworks. He has led the creation of strategic documents and guidelines that have strengthened higher education management, leadership capabilities, research collaboration support, and sustained partnerships, with some serving as blueprints for research capacity development. He has participated in national and international discourse on South Africa’s economic competitiveness, the developmental state, technology transfer, and innovation in comparison with OECD countries. He was nominated by the Deputy Vice-Chancellors’ Research Forum to serve on the Research and Innovation Strategy Group of the Universities South Africa Forum and is the past Chair of the Cape Higher Education Consortium. Prof Nhlapo emphasizes the strengths of universities of technology and the opportunities presented by the Fourth and Fifth Industrial Revolutions for youth development in South Africa.