The 7th Annual National Research Data Workshop showcases South Africa’s growing data ecosystem
The 7th Annual National Research Data Workshop (NRDW), held from 2–3 July 2025 at the CSIR International Convention Centre in Pretoria, brought together experts, institutions, and stakeholders across South Africa’s research data landscape. The event, hosted by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the National Integrated Cyberinfrastructure System (NICIS), offered two days of presentations and discussions on data infrastructure, stewardship, and governance in support of open science and digital transformation. Key topics were scaling infrastructure to meet research demands and strengthening the research data ecosystem in South Africa to enable innovation.
The UCT eResearch Centre was an active participant at this year’s workshop, contributing to important conversations around data governance, repository integration, and the future of research data services in South Africa. UCT’s involvement reflects its ongoing commitment to supporting researchers through robust digital infrastructure, policy alignment, and capacity building in the research data ecosystem.
The programme featured updates from national initiatives such as the Data Intensive Research Initiative of South Africa (DIRISA), the South African National Research Network (SANReN), and the Centre for High Performance Computing (CHPC), alongside a wide array of talks on data sovereignty, AI, open infrastructure, and digital cooperation.
Speakers from various institutions, including the University of the Witwatersrand, University of Fort Hare, and University of Pretoria, highlighted novel approaches to repository integration, dataset visibility, and AI-driven research support. The event concluded with a strong emphasis on cross-institutional collaboration, digital equity, and the need for sustainable data stewardship models.
One of the highlights of the programme was a talk by Prof Bruce Mellado from the University of the Witwatersrand, who presented on AI-powered technology transfer from the SA-CERN Programme.
His presentation showcased how machine learning techniques developed in high-energy physics are being applied to address pressing challenges in South Africa, demonstrating the tangible societal benefits of large-scale data science collaborations.
The CERN-SA programme facilitates the transfer of knowledge and technology from the CERN research environment to other research domains in South Africa. The UCT eResearch Centre, along with the Inter-university Institute for Data Intensive Astronomy (IDIA), is a participant in this initiative, helping to translate global research infrastructure expertise into national impact.
The event also included presentations by industry specialists, including First Coast Technologies (FCTEC). Niklas Zimmer, Digital Scholarship and Data Curation Manager, explored how AI tools can enhance efficiency and quality in the digitisation and preservation of research and heritage materials, an area of growing importance in the African context.
With sessions ranging from AI-powered technology transfer and data sovereignty to institutional case studies and infrastructure updates from DIRISA, CHPC, and SANReN, the NRDW 2025 once again affirmed its role as a critical platform for advancing national dialogue on research data practices.