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17 September 2019 | Story Lacea Loader | Photo Stephen Collett
Dr Khotso Mokhele
Dr Khotso Mokhele, was recently honoured by the National Research Foundation.
Dr Khotso Mokhele, Chancellor of the University of the Free State (UFS), received the special 20-Year Recognition Award from the National Research Foundation (NRF) during its annual awards ceremony at the Lord Charles Hotel in Somerset West, Western Cape, on 12 September 2019. 
 
Dr Mokhele was recognised for his extraordinary, impactful, and transformative contribution to the advancement of South African science and its positioning globally.

“On behalf of the UFS Rectorate and the university community, I would like to congratulate Dr Mokhele on this fine achievement,” says Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS. 

“With this award, the NRF has accentuated the immense value Dr Mokhele has been bringing to not only science, but also to the many other areas he has been involved with for many years – including the UFS in his capacity as Chancellor,” says Prof Petersen. 
 
On 7 September 2019, Dr Mokhele was also named Honorary Chancellor’s Distinguished Alumnus of the Year during the UFS’s annual Chancellor’s Distinguished Alumni Awards. 

Background of Dr Mokhele

Khotso David Kenneth Mokhele was born and bred in Bloemfontein, matriculated from the Moroka High School and obtained a BSc degree in Agriculture from the University of Fort Hare, where he won the Massey-Ferguson award for the best student in his field. He continued his postgraduate studies at the University of California Davis on the prestigious Fulbright-Hays Scholarship Programme, obtaining his MSc (Food Science) and PhD (Microbiology). He was subsequently awarded postdoctoral fellowships at the Johns Hopkins University and the University of Pennsylvania in the USA. Mokhele returned to South Africa in 1987, set on becoming a top-class academic and researcher. He held lecturing posts at the Universities of Fort Hare (1987-1989) and Cape Town (1990-1992). 

In 1992, he was approached by Dr Rein Arndt, the then President of the Foundation for Research Development (FRD – the predecessor of the NRF), to join the foundation as one of its vice-presidents. The decision was a difficult one for the young Mokhele. Not only had he just embarked on an academic career, he was uncertain whether it was appropriate for a political activist to join a parastatal organisation under the apartheid government. After much soul searching, he accepted the offer on condition that he was given the freedom to transform the FRD into a funding agency geared to meeting the needs of higher education in South Africa. Shortly after he joined the FRD in June 1992, he made his presence felt as an outstanding organiser and communicator; several new research-funding programmes were initiated, with a strong emphasis on developing people who had previously been excluded. When Dr Arndt retired in 1996, Mokhele was the obvious choice to succeed him as President of the FRD. As President and CEO of the National Research Foundation (NRF) (1999-2006), Dr Mokhele played a central role in providing visionary and strategic direction to the South African science system and to the development agenda of the country. 

He was part of the team that drafted the Green Paper for science and technology, was the founder President of the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAF), Chairperson of the Economic Advisory Council to the Premier of the Free State (2001-2004), and a member of the Advisory Council on Innovation to the Minister of Science and Technology (2003-2007). His role in securing government and international support for the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) Project is evidence of his dedication to science in South Africa. The success of this project laid the basis for South Africa being selected to host more than 70% of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), an international mega-telescope for radio astronomy. He was appointed as member of the first Council on Higher Education and deputy convenor of its task force on the Reconfiguration of Higher Education, and he served on the councils of a number of universities. More recently, he was appointed by the Minister of Science and Technology as a member of the National Advisory Council on Innovation, and by the Minister of Labour as chair of the National Skills Board. 

His role in science is recognised internationally. In achieving his vision, he recognised the importance of South Africa’s re-entry into the international science community and has been an ambassador for South African and African science in high-profile international fora. He was elected Vice-President: Scientific Planning and Review of the International Council for Sciencee (ICSU) and as Chairperson of its Committee for Scientific Planning and Review (2005-2008), as well as a member of the Committee on Developing and Transition Economy Countries of the International Social Science Council (2008-2010). He also represented South Africa on the executive board of UNESCO (1997-2001) and served as Chairperson of the Special Committee of this board (1999-2001). Dr Mokhele was part of the UNESCO assignment (2006-2007) to review the science and technology system of the member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and giving advice on how to leverage science, technology, and innovation for the development of the Caribbean region. 

Dr Mokhele’s corporate positions included Non-Executive Chairman on the Board of Directors of Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd (Implats), ArcelorMittal South Africa, and Adcock Ingram Holdings Ltd; Non-Executive Director of African Oxygen Ltd (Afrox), Zimbabwe Platinum Holdings Ltd (Zimplats), Mapitso Consortium, Kenosi Investment Holdings, and Tiger Brands Ltd. He is the President of the Hans Merensky Foundation (South Africa) and a trustee of SciDev.Net (a web-based scientific magazine based in London, UK) and Start International Inc (a global-change capacity-building initiative based in the USA). He was Chairman of the Rhodes Scholarship Selection Committee for Botswana, Malawi, Namibia, Lesotho, and Swaziland (2007–2011) and has served on the South Africa at Large Rhodes Scholarship Selection Committee for more than 10 years. 

Khotso Mokhele’s contribution to science in South Africa has received wide recognition locally and abroad. He has received six honorary doctorates, the most recent from Rutgers University in the USA. He was made a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour by the President of France in recognition of his personal efforts in strengthening scientific ties between France and South Africa, and was appointed a director of the Salzburg Global Seminar – an institution focused on global change, and subsequently as member of its Council of Senior Fellows. He was the recipient of the Technology Top 100 Lifetime Achievers Award in 2009, and the National Science and Technology Forum Award in 2005. He also received the Science Diplomacy Award from the Minister of Science and Technology in South Africa (2015). 

News Archive

Childhood obesity should be curbed early
2017-03-15

Description: Child obesity Tags: Child obesity

Serious intervention by parents is required to deal
with childhood obesity. Prof Louise van den Berg and
a group of final-year PhD students worked on a study
about the prevalence of obesity in six-year-olds in
South Africa.
Photo: Supplied

If your child is overweight when they start school at the age of six, unless you do something about it at that point, the indications are they are going to be overweight teenagers and obese adults. This is according to University of the Free State’s Prof Louise van den Berg.

Evidence has shown that overweight children and teenagers have a greater risk of developing lifestyle diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease later in life, and dying prematurely.

Obesity is a global pandemic rapidly spreading among adults and children, in developed and developing countries alike.

Dr Van den Berg worked with Keagan Di Ascenzo, Maryke Ferreira, Monja-Marie Kok, Anneke Lauwrens, all PhD students with the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, to conduct the study. Their research found that children who are overweight by the time they turn six should be screened for weight problems.

Why six-year-olds?
Children who are overweight between the ages of two and five are five times more likely to be overweight when they are 12. There are two periods in a normal life cycle when the body makes new fat cells. The first is in the uterus and the second is around the age of six. The second phase lasts from the age of six to puberty.

The study assessed the prevalence of obesity in six-year-olds as part of a campaign in South Africa to raise awareness of the problem among parents and educators.

A total of 99 children were chosen from seven schools in Mangaung, the capital city of Free State. The schools were chosen from quintile four and five schools, which when measured by their own resources and economic circumstances, are well resourced and serve largely middle-class and wealthy communities.

The children’s weight, height and waist circumference were measured and used to calculate a body mass index score and waist-to-height ratio. Both these figures are good predictors for future lifestyle disease risks such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease. A person with a good waist-to-height ratio can wrap a piece of string equal to their height around their waist at least twice.

When the children had a higher body mass index, they also had an increased waist to height ratio. The study found one in four children from the schools surveyed were overweight when they started primary school.

Nipping the fat in the bud
Although there are many factors that play a role in preventing childhood obesity, parents’ perceptions of their children’s weight play an important role. A recent study found that more than 50% of parents underestimate the weight of their obese children. These parents remain unaware of the risks their children face and are not motivated to take any action.

At least half of the parents whose children are overweight struggle to recognise their children’s weight problems fearing that they will be labelled or stigmatised. By the time they turn six overweight children should be referred to dieticians and nutritionists who are qualified to guide their parents in getting them to eat well and be more physically active at pre-primary and primary school.

The high prevalence of weight problems among six-year-olds found in this study is an urgent call to healthcare professionals to step up and empower parents, educators and children with the necessary skills for healthy dietary practices and adequate physical activity.

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