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Connected to Africa: Prof Ben Sebitosi leads the way
Author: Corporate Communications and Marketing
Published: 23/05/2023

​​​The institutional theme at Stellenbosch University (SU) for May this year is “Connected to Africa" and on 25 May we celebrate Africa Day with the rest of the world. Africa Day is the annual commemoration of the foundation of the Organisation of African Unity on 25 May 1963. SU has nurtured relationships with many institutions in other African countries over the past decades and our academics are collaborating with top scientists on the continent. In this series, we showcase a few of the SU academics who epitomize academic excellence through a meaningful footprint in the African context.  

Prof Ben Sebitosi is an emeritus professor at the Centre for Renewable and Sustainable Energy Studies in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at SU and a National Research Foundation (NRF) C2-rated researcher. Originally from Uganda, Sebitosi is a multidisciplinary expert in sustainable development who led the drafting of the Rwandan government's energy policy and strategy and coordinated the energy curriculum development for the Pan African University. He believes Africa's most valuable resource does not lie underground, in the sea or atmosphere but in its human resources. When he's not teaching or doing research, he loves to write poetry in his mother tongue, Luganda.

What inspired you to pursue a career in renewable and sustainable energy studies, and how has your research evolved over time?

Initially, I had this passion to pursue wind energy for my Master's Degree at the University of Cape Town, but my supervisor had a different project in mind. In hindsight, I am glad because it gave me good exposure and a foundation for what I would encounter later. Later, during my PhD, my research topic, “Applications of Advances in Automotive Technologies to Rural Electrification", presented me with a comprehensive opportunity to work with and adopt renewable energy as a career.

As a leader in the Intra-Africa MASTET project, could you tell us more about the initiative and its impact on academic collaboration and mobility across the African continent?

MASTET stands for Mobility of African Scholars for Transformative Engineering Training. The aim was a programme to promote African engineering training, and share and pool resources of the participating partners through exchange programs of students and staff with particular emphasis on gender. The latter has been identified as a major challenge for the engineering profession in Africa. So far, we have progressed well with the targeted applicants and produced a number of graduates and publications.

You've supervised many master's and doctoral students in the field of renewable energy. What qualities do you look for in your students, and how do you support them in their research endeavours?

I started with generic renewable energy engineering design and development. The field has evolved into sustainable livelihoods. We identify societal challenges such as food security and climate resilience and develop an appropriate intervention that often includes renewable energy to achieve an objective. I believe Africa's most valuable resource does not lie underground, in the sea or atmosphere but in its human resources. This is what must be nurtured and equipped to flourish. A sustainable future green economy must aim at greening the culture and minds of the youth. I want to use my skills to contribute to this aim.

What role do you believe universities and research institutions should play in promoting a sustainable and green future for Africa, and how can they collaborate to achieve this goal? 

Africa is endowed with abundant renewable energy and many other resources. However, these should never be the objective of a researcher. Rather, one should endeavour to identify pressing African socio-economic and environmental challenges as the point of departure. Because all these are primarily anchored by available capital and political will, pragmatic research must aim to solve this balancing act. 

Could you share with us a project or research accomplishment that you are particularly proud of, and how has it impacted the field of renewable energy studies?

A multi-objective optimization tool for the Malawian tea industry with sustainability considerations was a multidisciplinary PhD dissertation (in the Mechanical Engineering department) that I supervised some years back. It sought to explore the issue of corporate social responsibility. Defined as the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society, the major challenge identified was the absence of standardised modalities by which it would be achieved or a yardstick by which compliance could be graded. The solution was a brilliant software tool that was developed and deployed in a real corporate environment. This was by far the most creative original concept.

In your opinion, what are some of the biggest challenges facing the implementation of renewable energy solutions in Africa, and how can these be addressed?

A multitude of challenges exist. Apart from the endemic shortage of capital and investors, one challenge that immediately comes to mind is resource data. Very little (if any) resource assessment has been undertaken (anywhere) but projects still go ahead to be implemented and inevitably underperform or fail. There is also the issue of putting the proverbial cart before the horse, whereby instead of seeking to identify and target potential opportunities for which energy generation should be designed, energy is instead treated like a commodity (generated in advance) as opposed to the derived demand of those socio-economic activities that is really is.

You've been involved in energy policy and curriculum development at both the national and continental levels. What lessons have you learned from these experiences, and how have they informed your teaching and research?

My learning is ongoing. But I have picked up some quite hard lessons along the way. One example is that working with governments contrasts with traditional academic considerations. From a purely technical consideration, one pertinent question we ask is whether a policy achieves its stated goals and if it achieves those goals at the lowest cost. But if we think about how governments go about making decisions, we often have a different set of questions. These questions include whether the policy captures the public imagination or approval. Does it tend to benefit the interest of a particular stakeholder (or political benefactor) or a particular industry over and above another? Such lessons have enriched the quality of my teaching and research.

What advice do you have for young researchers and students who are interested in sustainable energy studies, and how can they become more involved in this field?

One must first seek to fully understand the background problem, believe that the problem is significant and important, and have the passion and drive for a sustainable solution.

Could you describe a particularly memorable or exciting highlight from your career so far?

One of my most exciting memories is when I emerged with a distinction from a small rural primary school that catapulted me into a world-class high school, King's College Budo in Kampala, Uganda.

What do you enjoy most about working at SU? 

Stellenbosch University is well-resourced and I have great colleagues and students to work with which provides a conducive environment for creativity.

What has been the proudest achievement of your life?

Very difficult to pinpoint, but when you see the smile on the face of a graduating student after an intensive and demanding research journey, that would definitely be one very proud moment.

Finally, tell us something exciting or interesting about yourself that few people would expect.  

I write poetry in the Luganda language. I have not published any poetry; I just love reading it for friends.