By Frederick Philander The Council of the University of Namibia has appointed Prof. Osmund Damian Mwandemele as Pro-Vice Chancellor: Academic Affairs and Research as from January 1 next year, it was announced in a press release. Prof. Mwandemele is currently the Director of Unam’s Sam Nujoma Marine and Coastal Resources Research Centre in Henties Bay. “He completed his Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Dar es Salaam in 1976, followed by a Masters Degree in 1978 at the same institution. He then enrolled for a PH.D degree with the University of Sidney in Australia, which he completed in 1983. Prof. Mwandemele has a proven track record of academic accomplishments, administrative leadership and the ability to confront new challenges facing higher education,” said Edwin Tjiramba, the director of communications and marketing at Unam in the statement. The learned man also has 30 years of teaching and research experience at university level. Of these, 18 years were at various senior university management and administration levels, among them: – Founding Director of the Sam Nujoma Marine and Coastal Resources Research Centre in Henties Bay; – Founding Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture & Natural Resources of the University of Namibia from 1995 to 2004; – Professor and Director of the Graduate School at Egerton University in Njoro, Kenya from 1990 to 1995; – Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Dar es Salaam from 1988 to 1990. Prof. Mwandemele also enjoys enormous recognition from internationally acclaimed organizations. Appointments and nominations below bear testimony to this: – Selected as Scientific Advisor of the International Foundation for Science based in Stockholm, Sweden; – Nominated as one of the top 20 African scientists to be founding members of the College of Research Associates of the United Nations University Institute of Natural Resources in Africa (UNU-INRA); – Appointed as Honorary Professor of the Institute of Tropical and Sub-tropical Agriculture of the Czech Agricultural University.