Ncube awarded a SARChI Chair

Professor Caroline Ncube, based in the Department of Commercial Law at UCT, has been awarded the SARChI Chair in Intellectual Property, Innovation and Development.  This prestigious award serves as well-earned recognition for Professor Ncube’s research in, and contribution to, the field of intellectual property law – with a particular focus on the promotion of the public interest and innovation.

Prof Ncube with Commercial Law Head of Department, Prof Rochelle Le Roux, and Dean of Law, Prof Penelope Andrews - at Prof Ncube's Inaugural Lecture 28th March 2018

This Chair forms part of the NRF SARChI initiative http://www.nrf.ac.za/division/rcce/instruments/research-chairs , intended to strengthen and improve the research and innovation capacity of public universities with regard to producing high-quality postgraduate students, and research and innovation outputs. The key objectives of SARChI are to:

• Expand the scientific research and innovation capacity of South Africa;
• Improve South Africa’s international research and innovation competitiveness while responding to social and economic challenges of the country;
• Attract and retain excellent researchers and scientists;
• Increase the production of masters and doctoral graduates; and
• Create research career pathways for young and mid-career researchers, with a strong research, innovation and human capital development output trajectory.

Specifically, the SARChI initiative is designed to respond to the priorities of government, namely:

1. Creation of decent work and sustainable livelihoods
2. Water, energy and the environment
3. Education
4. Health
5. Rural development, food security and land reform
6. The fight against crime and corruption.

Prof Ncube’s Chair is the fourth in the Law Faculty, and adds to the growing number at UCT – in reflection of the levels of excellence and innovation in research.  Over the course of the initial five-year award of the Chair, Prof Ncube will be undertaking work that seeks to have the transformative purpose of enhancing the elimination of poverty through the creation of an intellectual property system that promotes innovation to the benefit of the health, educational and cultural sectors. 

Prof Ncube recently delivered her inaugural lecture on 28^th March 2018, in which she provided insights into her current and future research focus – and which you can read about and listen to here and here.

To find out more about Professor Caroline Ncube and her work, read here.