Presentations

KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY PROFESSOR BLADE NZIMANDE, MINISTER OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION AT 2026 CONFERENCE OF THE HUMAN SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL (HSRC), 16 SEPTEMBER 2026

The System isn’t broken; it was built this way. How then shall we build better? – Assoc. Prof Mamello Thinyane

Digital Inequality and Social Justice – Dr Tsosheletso Chidi

DIGITAL HUMANITIES AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN AFRICA Opportunities, Tensions, and the Imperative for Indigenous Knowledge Governance – Prof Ayobami Ojebode

Brazil’s Scientific Computing Sector Between Sovereignty and Dependency: Infrastructure, Brain Drain, and the AI Plan (PBIA) – Dr. Carla Osthoff

Global South Pathways and Alternative Digital Futures: Egypt and BRICS Perspectives – Prof. Dr. Mohamed Aziz

Academic journals as instruments of science diplomacy and “soft power” – Dr. Ekaterina Vorontsova

The Future Scenarios of Writing (with AI) – Prof. Petrus Letaba

Innovating public participation in the City of Johannesburg – Kureish Isaacs

e-Participation Pilot Project in Mogale City Local Municipality – Tshepo Legodi & Sanah Madikwe-Twala

Findings from the COMPACT Programme – Theo Nkosi

Data Sovereignty: Establishing Data Governance as a Key Pillar of Africa’s Digital Transformation – Dr Vuyo Mjimba

Beyond Access: State SRD Digital Systems Illegibility among Women Informal Workers – Shirin Motala