UKZN Professor First Recipient of SAHUDA Award

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On Friday, 20 June 2025, UKZN’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Humanities Professor Nhlanhla Mkhize was awarded the first SAHUDA presidential special recognition medal for his exceptional contributions and dedication to excellence in the fields of the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

SAHUDA is the South African Humanities Deans’ Association.

Mkhize was nominated for this prestigious award by Professor Mogomme Masoga, the current SAHUDA President, and Professor Johannes A (Jannie) Smit, the current Chair of the College of Humanities Institute at UKZN, and Professor Paulus Zulu, the Director and Senior Research Fellow of the Maurice Webb Race Relations Unit, UKZN. Mkhize is a professor of Psychology specialising in African-centred Psychology, Ethics in Professional Psychology, Health, Research, and Indigenous Knowledge Systems.

He served as the Head of UKZN’s School of Psychology from 2008 to 2010; Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Development and Social Sciences from 2010 to 2011, and Dean of the School of Applied Human Sciences from 2012 to 2017 when he moved to his current position.

Mkhize holds a BA (Hons) cum laude (University of Natal, now University of KwaZulu-Natal), an MA (University of Iowa), and a PhD (University of Natal). He is a former Moody Exchange Scholar (University of Michigan, 1998) and Bram Fischer Scholar (2001) at the University of Oxford.

A Fulbright Fellow, he has presented several conference papers nationally and internationally in countries such as Kenya, Canada, Australia, the United States and Zimbabwe.

He has also delivered several invited keynote addresses to the Psychological Association of South Africa, the Pan-African Psychology Union, the American Psychological Association, the International Union of Psychological Science as well as an invited keynote address by Public Responsibility in Research and Medicine, a non-profit organisation based in the United States and dedicated to the advancement of the highest ethical standards in research.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mkhize was nominated by the South African Minister of Health to serve on the Ministerial Advisory Committee on COVID-19 and, at one stage, served as Acting Chair of this Committee.

His role was to provide expertise on the behavioural, psychosocial and ethical dimensions of the pandemic. He also served as the Chair of the Behavioural Sciences Working Group of the Ministerial Advisory Committee.

It was also during the COVID-19 period that, working with a group of emerging scholars in Social Work and Psychology, he established the MA’AT Institute, a fledgling, African-centred institute at UKZN, that aims to provide psychosocial counselling support to professionals (especially educators and health care workers), and families and individuals affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, through nation-wide telephonic counselling and later, face-to-face counselling. The interventions of the MA’AT Institute were recognised when members were invited to present their unique approach to the National Command Council of COVID-19.

Mkhize is a prominent African scholar who has been involved in various capacity-building and transformation projects in South Africa and the African continent. He has led the UKZN and Regional Psychosocial Support Initiative (REPSSI) collaboration on the Certificate Programme, Community-Based Work with Children and Youth Certificate Programme, and the Andrew W. Mellon Early Careers Scholars Programme. He also initiated and chaired the College of Humanities In-house Early Career Scholars programme, aiming to develop emerging scholars.

He co-designed an African-centred peace building programme in 2008, co-designed with the Sinani Centre for the Survivors of Violent Conflict and the Berghoff Foundation. This was the largest public and indigenous cleansing ceremony in KwaZulu-Natal, attended by His Majesty King Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu, Inkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi, the then Premier of KZN, and Dr Zweli Mkhize, who later served as Minister of Health under President Cyril Ramaphosa during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mkhize was a member of the Ministerial Task team that workshopped the Charter for the Humanities and Social Sciences, leading to the formation of the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (NIHSS) through an act of Parliament in 2013. He served as a Board member of the NIHSS and Chair of its Education and International Advisory Sub-Committee.

Mkhize also founded the UKZN College of Humanities Institute and its Doctoral Academy, reinforcing his commitment to building postgraduate capacity. His extensive publication record covers indigenous psychologies, ethics, African language transformation, and doctoral training. As a dedicated supervisor and practising Counselling Psychologist, he has mentored numerous emerging scholars and practitioners.

In her congratulatory remarks, for the award, current Director of the Centre for Sociological Research and Practice (CSRP); Sociology Department, University of Johannesburg, Professor Nthabiseng Motsemme said, ‘Prof Mkhize is an African scholar embodied, … and is not only a respected scholar and colleague, but also a dedicated university leader, institutional builder and nurturing mentor. I emphasise the word nurturing. … Siyabonga for the manifesting and sharing of your vision of Africa, African scholarship, African leadership, ukuzazi (self-awarness), and Ubuntu.’

In their congratulatory message, the NIHSS said, ‘Prof Nhlanhla Mkhize is a leading scholar in Black psychology, African ethics, and indigenous knowledge systems. He has made substantial contributions to the shaping of national frameworks on research ethics and the decolonisation of Higher Education, as well as mentoring generations of scholars.

His work has laid the critical foundations for transformative teaching, learning, and leadership within the humanities, and this recognition serves as a profound tribute to a visionary whose lifelong dedication will continue to motivate and uplift the intellectual and ethical core of the humanities in South Africa.

In his response, Smit said, ‘Prof Mkhize embodies the advanced innovative epistemic service excellence that have been pioneering UKZN as the Premier University of African Scholarship. He has been a beacon of light and hope, for both academia, as well as all the other 90% of societal, cultural and techno-scientific, socio-economic and socio-political service excellence our continent depends on for making our century the African century.’

Associate Professor in Political Science and Governance at the University of the Witwatersrand, TK Pooe, described Mkhize as an academic champion, praising him for his contributions and the well-deserved award he received. Pooe noted that Mkhize’s background in psychology has significantly enhanced education at the University, emphasising the importance of this knowledge across all departments to shape the future of academia in South Africa. He expressed confidence that Mkhize will continue to address emerging threats and opportunities like technology use within UKZN and Higher Education in the Humanities and Social Sciences.

Motsemme also said, ‘Sikufisela amandla nokuhle kodwa ukuthi uqhubeke imisebenzi yakho emihle.’ (We wish you strength and all the best to continue with your outstanding work.)

Words: Sinoyolo Mahlasela

Photograph: Supplied