Professor Loyiso Nongxa has been appointed as chairman of the Telkom Foundation Trust, with effect from December.

In a statement released by Telkom, the company says Nongxa has held a number of chairmanships, including the review committee of National System of Innovation, the review committee of the National Research Foundation Rating System, as well as the Higher Education South Africa Research and Innovation Strategy Group and Sasol’s Inzalo Foundation.

Nongxa is a qualified mathematician and has visited at a number of universities as a research scholar, including Harvard, Colorado and Connecticut.

Telkom group CEO Sipho Maseko" rel=tag>Sipho Maseko says the foundation is closely involved with initiatives to improve results in the so-called STEM areas (science, technology, English and mathematics).

“Professor Nongxa has extensive experience in and a deep understanding of challenges in the science and mathematics arena, including working with international institutions. As chairman, he will provide leadership and direction to strengthen the contribution the foundation makes to improve the quality of teaching and learning,” Maseko says.

Nongxa holds a BSc (Hons) and MSc from the University of the Western Cape. After obtaining his MSc, Nongxa became SA’s first black Rhodes Scholar, and obtained a doctorate in philosophy from Oxford University in 1982.