Mr Risenga Maluleke, a graduate of the Centre for Regional and Urban Innovation and Statistical Exploration (CRUISE) which is situated in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Stellenbosch University (SU), has been appointed as the new Statistician-General of South Africa and the Head of Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). Maluleke completed an MPhil in Urban and Regional Science at CRUISE and was one of the first group of students to complete this degree at the centre in 2011.
“We are very proud that one of our graduates have been appointed to this position and that we have contributed to equipping him for this demanding challenge to lead Statistics South Africa in providing statistical systems for evidence-based decision-making," said Professor Manie Geyer, Director of CRUISE.
CRUISE was established at SU in 2009 with the financial support of Stats SA and is part of a drive to advance science education in the Southern African region. The research centre is situated in the Geography and Environmental Studies Department and focuses on social and economic development issues locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. Since its inception the centre has placed a strong emphasis on quantitative empirical research and has also maintained a strong output level. It is also part of the ISIbalo group of institutions whose main aim is to advance the use of statistics in research in Africa. While CRUISE is considered a research centre, it also has an important teaching function offering postgraduate programmes in both Urban and Regional Science and Urban and Regional Planning.
According to a press release issued by Stats SA, Maluleke's has extensive experience in the organisation, which is backed by his qualifications – a BSc in Mathematical Statistics from the University of Limpopo and an MPhil in Urban and Regional Science from SU. He has also completed Senior Executive Programmes with the Wits and Harvard Business Schools.
“In Risenga Maluleke I had a trusted and enduring partner with whom over a quarter of a century we engaged in the most daring of leadership missions to construct what has become the most iconic institution of the state. Whilst matters of appointment of a Statistician-General are prescribed in law and are not for an outgoing Statistician-General, I am distinctly pleased by the choice the leadership has made. I can now safely disclose what I said to Dr Benny Mokaba twenty one years ago after the panel interviewed and decided to appoint Risenga Maluleke in October 1996 to the Statistics Office in Limpopo. I called Benny and said to him 'today we have appointed a new head for the Central Statistics Service in the making'," said his predecessor Mr Pali Lehohla.
“In Risenga we have a well-grounded leader with balance, instilling fairness and justice in all his dealings, he has enduring strength, he imbues humility, he is a servant leader, a village boy who with agility adapts to metropoles of the world, and who is ready to take on any adversity with a singularly determined mind for finding solutions. My success in leading and building this mighty organisation would not have been possible if Risenga was not leading with me in the most treacherous of waters. My relay is done I am passing the baton to a well-tested professional and leader."
Photo: Mr Risenga Maluleke, a graduate of the Centre for Regional and Urban Innovation and Statistical Exploration (CRUISE) at Stellenbosch University, has been appointed as the new Statistician-General of South Africa and the Head of Statistics South Africa.
