This week a delegation from the NWU will leave for the shores of the United States to visit North Carolina State University (NCSU).

We do so during a time of great tension between our two countries. We cannot look past that. The relationship between the US and South Africa is strained, but we cannot let that derail us from our goal, which is to learn, to keep learning and to bring back what we have learned to our university, our province, our country, and our continent.

At the NWU, we are committed to internationalisation. Our horizon curves with the contours of our globe, and we will continue to traverse boundaries as we seek to grow our international reputation and promote intercultural understanding.

Most importantly, it is about our students and their career opportunities. By actively creating partnerships through international collaborations, we enhance our global visibility, ultimately benefiting our students by expanding their career opportunities.

Let me tell you why this is important. At the end of 2024, South Africa's unemployment rate was 31,9%, and even more distressingly, our youth unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 to 34 was a staggering 45,5%. We need to open more doors for our students, because we will have failed in our responsibility to them if we only give them one choice, one option, one path to follow. Opportunities should be boundless and not confined to boundaries.

Back to the US.

NCSU is a friend of the NWU, as are many other universities across the US. Friends are there for each other through good times and hard ones. Our dialects may differ, but we speak a common language: that of expanding knowledge and building expertise.

Throughout my life, I have seen that taking hands is much more effective than clenching fists. Talking is better than shouting.

But to braai will always be better than to barbeque ...

I want to encourage you to follow our journey, to engage with us, and to share your thoughts. It has been and will remain my purpose to ensure that everything we do here at the NWU is a shared experience. As it should be in any family.

Prof. Mzubanzi Bismark Tyobeka
Principal and Vice-Chancellor