Recognising Outstanding Institutional Research Champions
In a festive ceremony during NUST’s 10th Anniversary End Year Celebration, the 2025 Researcher of the Year Awards honoured six outstanding academics and highlighted a decade of research-driven innovation and scholarly impact that has advanced knowledge and fostered development. This celebration aligns with NUST’s mission of being an engaged and responsive university, meeting the needs of stakeholders through excellent education, applied research, innovation and service.
Six researchers were honoured in categories spanning early-career, emerging, and established levels: Dr Titus Nghipulile was named Best Institutional Early Career Researcher; Dr Jennilee Magdalene Kohima won Best Emerging Career Researcher in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment (FEBE); and Dr Daniel Kamotho earned Best Institutional Emerging Career Researcher. In the established researcher ranks, Prof Haileleul Woldemariam was recognised as Best Established Career Researcher for the Faculty of Commerce, Human Sciences and Education (FCHSE). The highest institutional honour in this category jointly went to Prof Benjamin Siyowi Mapani and Prof Oluibukun Ajayi, jointly honoured as Best Institutional Established Career Researchers.
In a special highlight, Dr Leena Kloppers, Senior Lecturer: TVET, received the 10-Year Anniversary Grant Acquisition Award for securing the highest-value research grant of 2025: the Ignite Project, valued at €2 million over a two-year period. The announcement drew enthusiastic applause and underscored the importance of attracting research funding to advance NUST’s scholarly endeavours.
“Over the past decade, we have witnessed a transformation in our research landscape—each of these awardees exemplifies the innovation, dedication, and societal impact that define NUST’s research mission,” Prof Colin Stanley, Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Partnerships, remarked. “Their achievements not only honour our tenth anniversary but also inspire the next generation of scholars to build on this legacy of excellence.”
The collective achievements of these honourees reaffirm NUST’s position at the forefront of addressing national and global challenges through research, setting an inspiring precedent for the next decade.
