Dr Anwar Vahed is the Director for the Data Intensive Research Initiative of South Africa (DIRISA). In his role, he oversees the establishment of the national research data infrastructure, coordinates the development of relevant expertise and the implementation of research data strategies and policies. DIRISA, together with the Centre for High Performance Computing (CHPC) and the South African National Research Network (SANReN), forms the technological component of the National Integrated Cyberinfrastucture System (NICIS) of South Africa.
Anwar is a computer scientist with background and interests in the data sciences and data management. He has developed the National Strategic Framework for Big Data and led research in Big Data analytics for earth observation at the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). He serves on several international forums in the data sciences such as the Research Data Alliance (RDA), US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and CODATA.
Sthembiso Nhlakanipho Mkhwanazi a Senior Project Manager for DIRISA.
He is responsible for planning and overseeing the implementation of a project portfolio in fulfillment of DIRISA’s contractual commitments, including monitoring, evaluation and reporting in the execution of projects and delivery of outputs for the DIRISA team. Sthembiso holds a Masters Degree in Project and Programme Management from Cranefield College in Pretoria.
Xolani Nkosi is the Project Coordinator for DIRISA.
He holds a Masters Degree in Development Studies from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. He has interests in Research and Development (R&D), Strategic Management and Policy Development. Xolani has experience in community-based projects, research (both qualitative and quantitative) and has conducted research for the Policy and Programmes Directorate at the National Youth Commission, Government Communication and Information Systems, South African Qualifications Authority and was Research Executive at Ipsos Markinor.
Before joining DIRISA, he worked for the Meraka Institute’s Strategic Research Innovation Management unit at CSIR. This unit focused on improving the quality of life of South Africans and Africa, through technological innovation and R&D work.
Outside work, his interests range from politics, social issues, and sports (having played football at the highest level for Wits University’s reserve team and SA Universities national team).
Precious Sigudla is the Software Developer for DIRISA.
She holds a BSc Computer Science degree from the University of the Western cape and currently pursuing a BSc Hon in Computing and have experience in Software testing and BI Analytics in Big data. She won the best Insight in Global App testing and enjoys learning new things.
Prior to joining DIRISA, she was working at the Shared Services Human Resources division of the CSIR as a Recruitment Administrator. Yoliswa has a National Diploma in Business Management from Damelin and is pursuing a BCom in Marketing and Business Management with Damelin.
Yoliswa Sawuti is the Group Assistant to DIRISA.
Prior to joining DIRISA, she was working at the Shared Services Human Resources division of the CSIR as a Recruitment Administrator. Yoliswa has a National Diploma in Business Management from Damelin and is pursuing a BCom in Marketing and Business Management with Damelin.
Prior to joining DIRISA, she worked for the CSIR’s Defense Peace Safety Security unit of the the CSIR. She holds a Masters Degree in Information Technology from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth and is pursuing a doctorate with the University of South Africa.
In 2016, Nobubele was selected as Techwomen Emerging Leader and chosen to work at Twitter in San Francisco recently. She is passionate about community-driven initiatives, enjoys traveling and tasting culinary treats from from different parts of the world. She considers herself somewhat of an “amateur chef”
Nhlamulo is not new to the CSIR: upon completion of his Bachelor’s qualification, he joined the CSIR as an intern with the then MDS unit in 2015. He was promoted to a Software Engineer in 2017, and his role included developing software that runs on robots and assembling robots. In 2019, he left the CSIR to join Rand Merchant Bank on a project on migrating their existing architecture (Monolith applications) into a microservices architecture. He considers himself to be a hardworking person and during his spare time, he enjoys playing computer games.