AISA Council

Bekumuzi Hlatshwayo, Dr – PhD. Lehigh University, US (1995) Dr Hlatshwayo was appointed Chairperson of Council in January 2010, after his appointment to the Council in May 2004. He is a member of the Human Resources and Finance (HRFin), and Research committees at AISA. He is currently a Project Support Specialist at Tongaat Hulett and President of the South African Institution of Chemical Engineers. He serves on various boards of entities promoting research and human capital development in South Africa.		Thandi Sidzumo-Mazibuko, Dr – PhD. University of Manitoba, Canada (1998) Dr Sidzumo-Mazibuko is Executive Director: Corporate Affairs in the office of the Principal and Vice-Chancellor at the University of South Africa (UNISA). She has been a member of the continental expert group, Gender Mainstreaming, Monitoring and Evaluation, of the United Nations Economic Commission on Africa (ECA) since 2001. She was the first African female Chairperson of Council at the University of Fort Hare (2000–2006) and Policy Advisor to the Minister of Education (2004/2005). She serves on the Higher Education South Africa (HESA) Transformation Strategic Group, a subcommittee of HESA. She was appointed to the AISA Council in January 2010 and serves on the Research Committee.

Siphamandla Zondi, Dr – Ph.D. University of Cambridge, UK (2000)Siphamandla Zondi received his BA and Higher Diploma in Education from the former University of Durban-Westville before graduating with MPhil in African History and DPhil in African Studies at the University of Cambridge, UK. He currently holds the position of the Director of the Institute for Global Dialogue (IGD) – a prominent international diplomacy and foreign policy think tank. Prior to that, he headed the IGD’s Africa and SA Foreign Policy programme for five years. Between 2000 and 2004, he coordinated Africa Institute of South Africa’s SADC integration and sustainable development programme. Dr Zondi also chairs the Scientific Committee of the Archie Mafeje Research Institute and is a member-subscriber of the Board of Action Aid. He recently chaired the African Union’s Technical Experts Committee on Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development in the Sudan.Dr Zondi has published widely in his areas of research interest, namely: regional integration and governance, South Africa’s international relations and foreign policy, and public health. Dr Zondi is a regular media commentator and writes a weekly political column.		Yolanda Sadie, Prof. – PhD. University of Cape Town, South Africa (1991) Prof. Sadie is Professor of Politics at the University of Johannesburg. She was Head of the Department of Politics from 2002 to 2007. She also chaired the research committee, Women, Politics and Developing Nations, of the International Political Science Association from 2003 to 2009. She was appointed to the AISA Council in 2007. She is Chairperson of the Research Committee and is also a member of the Audit Committee.

Nicholas Biekpe, Prof. – PhD. Queen’s University Belfast, UK (1996) Prof. Biekpe is the President of Africagrowth Institute. He is a Visiting Professor of Development Finance and Econometrics at the University of Cape Town Business School and Wits Business School, and a Senior Visiting Fellow at Queen’s University Belfast. Prof. Biekpe is a chartered statistician, a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society of Great Britain and a Chartered Scientist of the Science Council of the UK. He is also a board member at the South Africa Savings Institute. Prof. Biekpe was appointed to Council in 2008, where he is a member of the Research Committee.		John Daniel, Prof. – PhD. State University of New York at Buffalo, US (1975) Prof. Daniel is Academic Director at the School for International Training in Durban, South Africa. He previously worked at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) as Research Director: Governance and Democracy and head of its publishing arm, HSRC Press. He also worked at Rhodes University and with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). Prof. Daniel was appointed to Council in January 2010. He is the Chairperson of the HRFin Committee and a member of the Research Committee.

Thomas Auf der Heyde, Prof. – PhD, University Cape Town, South Africa (1988) Prof. Auf der Heyde is the Deputy Director-General: International Cooperation and Resources in the Department of Science and Technology in the South African Government. He has held teaching, research and executive management positions at the universities of the Western Cape, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Bern, Cambridge and Princeton. He was appointed to Council in 2008 and is a member of the Research Committee.		K. Sam Kongwa, Dr – D.Tech, Tshwane University of Technology, South Africa (2008) Dr Kongwa is the CEO of Sechaba Group of Companies in Johannesburg, South Africa. He was previously a Senior Lecturer and Head of Department at the University of Transkei and Walter Sisulu University. Dr Kongwa worked for the Africa Institute of South Africa as a Researcher between 1986 and 1992. He was appointed to Council in January 2010 and serves on the HRFin and Audit committees.

Subathree Padayachy, Ms – MCom, University of Johannesburg, South Africa (1998) Ms Padayachy is an Audit Portfolio Manager at Firstrand, and looks after the WesBank portfolio. She was appointed to Council in 2008. She serves as a non-executive member on the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) Audit Committee. She is also the Chair of the Audit Committee at AISA.		Ngwanamathiba Khutsoane, Adv. – LLB. University of Bophuthatswana, South Africa (1991) Adv. Khutsoane is an admitted Advocate of the High Court of South Africa. She was previously the Head of Department: Gender at the National Institute for Public Interest Law & Research in Pretoria. From 2000 to 2003 she was the Chief Executive Officer of Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF) in Harare, Zimbabwe. Prior to that, she was Director of the Bophuthatswana Law Society. She was appointed to Council in March 2011 and is a member of the HRFin Committee.

Narissa Ramdhani, Dr – PhD. University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (2009) Dr Ramdhani is the Chief Executive Officer of the Ifa Lethu Foundation. She previously held directorships of research centres at the former universities of Durban-Westville and Natal, and held other positions with Yale University, the University of Connecticut and with Nelson Mandela Special Projects. She has shared her expertise on rural empowerment, youth development and challenges facing emerging democracies with bodies such as the United Nations and countries such as Poland, Chile, Spain, the US, Australia, Namibia, Kenya and India. She was recently awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from the University of Connecticut in recognition of her efforts to uplift rural communities and youth in South Africa. She was appointed to Council in January 2010 and she serves on the HRFin Committee.