South Africa: Science of the sea in focus at new campus
Nelson Mandela University (NMU) yesterday launched South Africa’s first dedicated ocean sciences campus, aimed at finding ways to protect and sustainably harvest the sea.
A who’s who in the marine science fraternity, supplemented by an array of dignitaries, attended the event, including Eastern Cape rural development MEC Mlibo Qoboshiyane, who hailed it as “one of the greatest moments in the history of higher education under the democratic dispensation”.
The multimillion-rand facility includes laboratories, a scubadiving chamber, space to house a fleet of mini-submarines and for tech-experts to work on them.
The intention is that it will pull together estuarine, coastal and deep-sea scientists in a multi-disciplinary centre of excellence to benefit Africa and the globe.
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