---
title: "‘You belong in the room’: SA’s women vice-chancellors speak on breaking boundaries"
description: "A growing number of female professors is taking charge of institutions and challenging the idea of what university leadership should look like. Out of 26 public universities across South Africa, women have long held only a fraction of the vice-chancellor seats, navigating entrenched traditions, systemic patriarchy and relentless institutional resistance."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "EQUALITY RISING"
author: "Siyabonga Goni"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/siyabonga-gooni/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-08-10-you-belong-in-the-room-sa-s-women-vice-chancellors-speak-on-breaking-boundaries/"
published: "2026-08-10T19:25:12"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 1274
---

# ‘You belong in the room’: SA’s women vice-chancellors speak on breaking boundaries

> A growing number of female professors is taking charge of institutions and challenging the idea of what university leadership should look like. Out of 26 public universities across South Africa, women have long held only a fraction of the vice-chancellor seats, navigating entrenched traditions, systemic patriarchy and relentless institutional resistance.

By Siyabonga Goni · Published 10 August 2026, 21:25 SAST

## Key points
- A visible shift in tertiary leadership: women now head nine of South Africa’s 26 public universities – including Unisa’s first-ever female principal and vice‑chancellor – signalling change, though men remain the majority.
- Daily Maverick profiles leaders such as Unisa’s Prof Puleng LenkaBula, University of Mpumalanga’s Prof Thenjiwe Meyiwa and Sol Plaatje’s Prof Debra Meyer, whose paths differ but share a common fight against entrenched patriarchy and institutional resistance.
- Their playbook: prove competence repeatedly, build trust through evidence‑based decisions and ubuntu, and combine academic credibility with strategic, financial and people leadership to drive change.
- Their message to young women is blunt and urgent – don’t wait for permission, “you belong in the room”, and every barrier you break widens the path for the next generation. Read on for their stories and inside lessons.

## Content

For generations of women entering South Africa’s universities, the person occupying the highest office on campus has more often than not been a man. That picture is beginning to change. Of the country’s 26 public universities, women now lead nine institutions.

In commemoration of Women’s Day on 9 August, Daily Maverick reached out to executive leaders across the higher education sector. The women leading these institutions detail that they did not arrive at the top by following similar paths. They reveal a familiar thread: having to prove themselves, navigate institutional politics, overcome entrenched expectations and, at times, enter spaces where leadership was not expected to look like them.

[Read more

SA women driving change in classrooms, clinics, courtrooms

August 10, 2025 ![Image](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/bh47KlHo5OSvxfbGaZeFyZ66VoU=/450x0/smart/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Nokuthula-Sibiya-1.jpg)](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-08-10-sa-women-powerhouses-driving-change-in-classrooms-clinics-courtrooms/)

Women from three top universities, the University of South Africa’s (Unisa) Professor Puleng LenkaBula, University of Mpumalanga’s Professor Thenjiwe Meyiwa and Sol Plaatje University’s Professor Debra Meyer reflect on their journey to the top.

### **‘Leadership was not always expected to look like me’**

![Siya-FemaleVCs-Empowerment](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/U1Dtq2YtG5zRhbwUixN6SqpdRoo=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/765854934_1593835602754406_6362198995562454643_n_763170.jpg)

*Professor Thenjiwe Meyiwa, the vice-chancellor the University of Mpumalanga. (Photo: Facebook / Central News)*

Prof Meyiwa, who in October 2025 became vice-chancellor of the University of Mpumalanga (which along with Sol Plaatje University is one of South Africa’s first post-apartheid public universities), said the challenge was not a single dramatic obstacle. It was the accumulation of institutional traditions and unequal access to opportunity.

“As a Black woman in higher education, I often found that I had to demonstrate my competence repeatedly, while simultaneously earning trust in spaces where executive leadership was not always expected to look like me,” Prof Meyiwa said.

Her response was to let her work build the case for her leadership. She expanded her capabilities across academic management, university administration and macro strategy, grounding her approach in the core principle of Ubuntu.

“My resilience has always been anchored in faith, purpose, and the understanding that leadership is ultimately about service,” she said. “Research teaches patience, evidence-based decision-making and intellectual humility, all qualities that are invaluable when leading complex institutions.”

### **When patriarchy tells you to wait**

![Unisa Vice-Chancellor Puleng LenkaBula. (Photo: Supplied)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/BDmhLUxXca8RvGbqLFpTPbBdrEQ=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Puleng-LenkaBula.jpeg)

*Professor Puleng LenkaBula, the vice-chancellor of Unisa. (Photo: Supplied)*

At the largest open distance-learning institution in Africa and one of the longest-standing dedicated distance education universities in the world, Prof LenkaBula said she faced a different kind of resistance in her journey to the vice-chancellorship of Unisa.

“I remember receiving a message from one of the male colleagues, a former principal and vice-chancellor to boot, informing me that he was not going to support my candidature,” Prof LenkaBula recalled.

“The second hurdle \[...\] is that there was contestation regarding the different camps for the three short-listed candidates. \[...\] the kind of fierce opposition one would later endure after assumption of duty, ironically as the first female/woman principal and vice-chancellor in Unisa’s 147 years of existence then. In my first year in office, I often observed that Unisa had not been ready for my appointment, as reflected in the hostile reception I encountered in some quarters of the university community,” Prof LenkaBula said.

Despite these daunting obstacles, she refused to back down. “Faith, courage, a justice-seeking commitment, my insatiable desire to see the lives of the previously marginalised transformed by education and a strong feminist ethic all contributed to my capacity to overcome the hurdles,” Prof LenkaBula said.

### **Addressing resistance**

![Siya-SPUCOO-courtcase](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/VrhnfCLOP0PQmt23xWyBCqp5af4=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/SolPlaatjieUniversity_766680.jpeg)

*Professor Debra Meyer, the vice-chancellor of Sol Plaatje University. (Photo: LinkedIn)*

Prof Meyer notes that her path to the vice-chancellorship at Sol Plaatje University was marked by various obstacles. She had to navigate institutional politics, manage limited resources and balance competing stakeholder interests, all while facing resistance to change and the ongoing under-representation of women in senior leadership roles.

“To address resistance to organisational change, I worked on building trust, consulting widely and communicating transparently,” Prof Meyer said. “I had to transition from being recognised for my academic leadership to leading an entire university, and that required demonstrating that academic excellence can be complemented by strong strategic planning, financial stewardship and people leadership,” said Prof Meyer.

Integrity, humility, continuous learning and service have remained central to Prof Meyer’s leadership, while family, friends, mentors and colleagues have provided the support and perspective needed to survive difficult moments.

### **‘You belong in the room’**

The vice-chancellors also shared advice for upcoming women leaders. They said young women should not allow other people’s doubts to limit their ambitions, they should not wait for permission, and that they belong in the room.

“Never allow anyone else to define the limits of your potential. Invest deeply in your education, work with excellence, remain curious and never stop learning. There will be moments when you doubt yourself, and there will be occasions when others underestimate you. Do not let either determine your future… Every barrier you overcome makes it easier for another young woman to believe that she belongs in the room,” Prof Meyiwa said.

> “Do not wait for permission to lead or for every obstacle to disappear before pursuing your purpose.”

Unisa’s Prof LenkaBula said women should not wait for permission. “Believe that yourself despite our hostile patriarchal/kyriarchal contexts, believe \[that\] your voice, your intellect and your lived experiences are valuable.

“Remember, there is no universal women’s experience, so do justice to your own unique experience as an individual woman/female person and refuse to be somebody’s copy. Do not wait for permission to lead or for every obstacle to disappear before pursuing your purpose,” Prof LenkaBula said.

As we commemorate the courageous women of 1956, we are reminded that every generation inherits both a legacy and a responsibility. The women who marched before us expanded the boundaries of possibility. Our task is to carry that legacy forward by leading with courage and justice,” Prof LenkaBula said.

> “You must invest in your planned career by building expertise and pursuing lifelong learning. Don’t wait for perfect conditions before putting yourself forward for a leadership role.”

Meanwhile, Prof Meyer said: “To every young woman aspiring to an executive leadership role, you must believe that you belong in the room where it happens, before anyone else will. You must invest in your planned career by building expertise and pursuing lifelong learning. Don’t wait for perfect conditions before putting yourself forward for a leadership role.”

### **Women leading**

![Siya-FemaleVCs-Empowerment](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/A_DjqtQOsAXzSmT5Ea8v7DH00Lk=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/626798749_1324061243089198_279454647619640671_n_771197.jpg)

*File photo: Prof Pamela Dube is at the helm of the Central University of Technology. (Photo: Facebook / CUT, Free State)*

In 2026, women are also at the helm of the Central University of Technology (CUT), Mangosuthu University of Technology, Nelson Mandela University, the University of the Free State, the University of Zululand and Walter Sisulu University.

[Professor Pamela Dube](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-06-29-following-the-yellow-brick-road-to-vice-chancellorship-the-inspiring-story-of-pamela-zibuyile-dube/?dm_source=blocks-horizontal&dm_medium=card-link&dm_campaign=inform&dm_position=1) is the first woman to lead the CUT and is also the deputy chairperson of Universities South Africa, the body representing the country’s 26 public universities. Professor Nokuthula Sibiya became the first woman from Umlazi to lead Mangosuthu University of Technology when she took office in 2024.

![Siya-FemaleVCs-Empowerment](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/t52MBL9mS4bRgjDW2fHhS5_E9gg=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/61502995_2355242417860811_2625084372092452864_n_606178.jpg)

*File photo: Professor Sibongile Muthwa is vice-chancellor of Nelson Mandela University. (Photo: Facebook / Nelson Mandela University)*

Professor Sibongile Muthwa has led [Nelson Mandela Universit](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2026-03-31-a-chancellors-reflections-on-eight-years-shaping-purpose-and-change-at-mandela-university/?dm_source=blocks-horizontal&dm_medium=card-link&dm_campaign=inform&dm_position=1)y since 2017, while [Professor Hester Klopper](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-06-10-reflections-as-vice-chancellor-and-principal-at-the-university-of-the-free-state/) became the first woman to lead the University of the Free State in its more than 120-year history. Professor Nokuthula Winfred Kunene became vice-chancellor of the University of Zululand in January 2026, following a career that included her serving as the university’s deputy vice-chancellor for research and innovation.

At Walter Sisulu University, Dr Thandi Mgwebi began her term as vice-chancellor and principal in January 2026, bringing experience from the higher education, research and science sectors.

The numbers are still not equal. Men remain in the majority among South Africa’s university vice-chancellors. But the change is becoming visible. **DM**