Founded in 2004 as an independent charitable organisation established by Mr William “Bill" Frankel OBE, a friend of Stellenbosch University, the Foundation is a UK-registered charity (No. 1107297) created to empower alumni and friends to directly support deserving students and propel Stellenbosch University's strategic ambitions forward.
The Foundation plays a crucial role in advancing the University's mission by enabling UK and Europe-based alumni and supporters to contribute meaningfully to the lives of students and the broader university community. Funds raised are directed toward a wide range of initiatives, including student financial aid, academic support, wellness programmes, and residence life enhancements. In recent years, the Foundation has also supported urgent needs such as hardship relief and inclusion-focused initiatives, helping to reduce barriers to access and success. By creating pathways for UK and Europe based donors to give tax-efficiently, the Foundation strengthens the global network of support behind Stellenbosch University - fostering excellence, resilience, and opportunity for generations to come.
Governance & Transparency
- Registered charity: No. 1107297, UK Companies House No. 05304075
- Volunteer-led: The Foundation is governed by trustees who serve voluntarily; no staff receive remuneration.
- Accountable and transparent: Annual reports and financial statements are submitted on time and are available via the UK Charity Commission register.
Governance & Oversight
The Stellenbosch University SA Foundation UK is governed by a board of dedicated trustees who provide strategic direction, fiduciary oversight, and ensure the Foundation operates in alignment with its charitable purpose. The trustees serve on a voluntary basis and bring a diverse range of professional expertise and experience to the Foundation's leadership.
Their responsibilities include reviewing and approving grants, safeguarding the Foundation's financial integrity, and ensuring full compliance with UK charity law. The trustees are committed to transparency, accountability, and maintaining the trust of our donors and stakeholders, both in the UK and in South Africa.
The trustees are:
| Andrea Barry
Strategy Director for the Pupkewitz Group
Alma Mater/s: Stellenbosch University (SU)
Harvard Business School
Qualifications: BCom Actuarial Science 2006 (SU) Master of Business Administration - MBA 2017 (Harvard)
Andrea Barry is a respected African business leader who plays a key leadership role at the Pupkewitz Group – a 100-year-old Namibian business with a diversified portfolio of companies operating predominantly in industrial retail. Andrea is committed to continuing the legacy of her late grandfather, the Namibian business icon and philanthropist, Harold Pupkewitz, who was passionate about building a successful business that would contribute meaningfully to the Namibian economy, while giving back to the community.
Andrea grew up in Namibia and started her career in insurance in South Africa, where she qualified as an actuary and went on to hold senior positions in product development, capital solvency, sales, and business intelligence at Liberty. She later became the first Namibian to be accepted to the full-time MBA at Harvard Business School. At Harvard, she made it her mission to put Namibia on the map, catalysing the visits of three Ivy League business schools to Namibia and in 2017, co-chairing the Africa Business Conference at Harvard – the largest student-run conference on Africa in the world.
Today, she operates out of London as the Strategy Director for the Pupkewitz Group, growing and diversifying its interests in industrial retail, automotive, property, fintech, and manufacturing. Andrea leads the recruitment and oversight of top management and is a steward of the Pupkewitz brand. She has served as a director of the holding company since 2012 and chairs the boards for numerous subsidiary businesses. Andrea is also a trustee of the Pupkewitz Foundation, the corporate social investment arm of the Pupkewitz Group and one of Namibia’s flagship foundations.
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| Dalton Odendaal Consultant at Harbottle & Lewis
Alma Mater/s: Stellenbosch University Oxford University Cambridge University King's College London Qualifications: BCom cum laude 1989 (SU) LLB cum laude 1991 (SU) LLM 1993 (Cambridge) Bachelor of Civil Law 1996 (Oxford) PGC Sports Law (KCL) Dalton Odendaal is a Consultant at Harbottle & Lewis LLP. He was a partner in the firm's Sports Law Group prior to joining the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Limited where he was the Head of Legal: Commercial from 2007 until 2012. After the London Olympics, Dalton worked as the Director of Business Development at the British Olympic Association where he was responsible for restructuring the BOA's sponsorship and licensing programme. He is the founder and director of a sports rights management company which advises rights holders on the commercial exploitation of their rights. He was General Counsel for the inaugural Invictus Games in 2014 and still continues to provide legal support to the Invictus Games Foundation, with his sports rights management company running the commercial rights programme for the Invictus Games.
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| Liesl Fichardt
Partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan Alma Mater/s: Stellenbosch University Notre Dame University University of Cape Town Chartered Institute of Taxation Qualifications: BCom Law 1987 (SU) LLB 1989 (SU) LLM cum laude 1991 (ND) H. Dip Tax 2008 (CIT)
Liesl Fichardt is head of International Tax Disputes at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, and formerly the Head of Tax Disputes at Clifford Chance. She is top rated in the Chambers and Legal 500 directories and is listed in International Tax Review's Tax Controversy Leaders as one of the top tax specialists in the UK. Liesl is former Chair of the British Branch of the International Fiscal Association and also sits on the International Taxes Committee of the Law Society of England and Wales. She sits on the Advisory Committee for the MSc in International Taxation at Oxford University.
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| Philip Lochner
Founder and CEO PedalSure
Alma Mater/s: Stellenbosch University London Business School Qualifications: BCom Law 2001 (SU) MBA 2012 (LBS) Philip Lochner is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Pedalsure . He has also previously served as the UK General Manager for Orca, was VP of Finance and Operations (North America) for HiFX and Manager at Infrastructure Finance Corporation Limited. |
| Professor Deresh Ramjugernath
13th Rector and Vice-Chancellor of Stellenbosch University
Alma Mater/s: University of KwaZulu-Natal
Qualifications: BSc Eng (Chemical) in 1993
MSc Eng (Chemical) upgraded to a PhD in 1995
PhD in Chemical Engineering in 2000 Prof Ramjugernath officially stepped into his new role on 1 April 2025. A seasoned and highly experienced higher education leader with extensive senior executive experience in the sector in South Africa, Ramjugernath served as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Learning and Teaching at SU since January 2021.
Before making Stellenbosch his home, he was Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research and Pro Vice-Chancellor: Innovation, Commercialisation and Entrepreneurship at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
He boasts extensive board and governance experience having served on several company and organisation boards.
A pre-eminent scientist in the field of chemical engineering and specifically in chemical thermodynamics and separation technology (becoming the youngest full professor in his field in Africa at age 31), Ramjugernath served as the DST/NRF South African Research Chair (SARChI) for Fluorine Process Engineering and Separation Technology until 2018.
He has successfully graduated over 130 master's and PhD students and supervised over 20 postdoctoral fellows. Ramjugernath has published in excess of 350 peer-reviewed journal papers and has presented at least 300 papers at international conferences.
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| Bill Frankel
Chairperson of the Foundation
 Alma Mater/s: University of Cape Town
Bill Frankel was born and brought up in South Africa and is an alumnus of the University of Cape Town. After obtaining a BA in law in 1964 he went into exile, spent a year reading for the LLB at Sydney University and then arrived in the UK in late 1965. He requalified and was admitted as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court in the UK in June 1970 and in Sept 1970 he was made a partner in a prestigious top City of London law practice where he practiced until his retirement from the law in 2014. For over 25 years, Bill was the secret legal consultant to Canon Collins' International Defence and Aid Fund for Southern Africa (IDAF) with prime responsibility for overseeing and secretly channellling funds into Southern Africa to pay for the legal costs of virtually every political trial during the days of apartheid. Appointed OBE by the Queen in her Millenium Honours list for services to human rights, Bill is experienced in issues of human rights, constitutionalism and education. He is a trustee and chair of a number of charities including, inter alia, eponymous UK charities promoted by the Universities of the Witwatersrand, Stellenbosch and Fort Hare and also by the Constitutional Court. He is also Chair of the Claude Leon Foundation which is one of the largest grant giving South African registered charities, focused primarily on education and human rights. In 2007, Bill was appointed an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa for services to Science education and research. In 2014 the Vice Chancellor of UCT honoured Bill by conferring on him the VC's Silver medal in recognition of his tireless work in the fields of education, human rights and constitutionalism and his ongoing support of many worthy causes through his philanthropy which continues to have a far reaching and profound impact both in South Africa and further afield. In 2015, South Africa conferred on Bill the Order of Luthuli Silver Medal describing his excellent services in the liberation struggle against apartheid with particular reference to his secret and central involvement with IDAF.
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