By Nathan Adams
There is symbolism and deep meaning in every garment, every speech, and every step of the procession that forms part of the inauguration of a Rector and Vice-Chancellor at the University of the Western Cape (UWC).Many of these traditions continued on 15 February 2025, when Professor Robert Balfour was installed as UWC’s eighth Rector and Vice-Chancellor.
At the inauguration ceremony, it is customary for the Rector and Vice-Chancellor to address guests and present their vision for their term in office. At UWC, these speeches have always contained powerful messages that have resonated beyond the University and become key historical moments in South Africa’s history.
In 1975, Professor Richard van der Ross was inaugurated as the third Rector and Vice-Chancellor, only five years after UWC had been awarded university status. In his speech, he emphasised the importance of hard work, humane values, and reasoned discussion as the foundations of a research-led institution that needed to be laid.
When he was inaugurated in 1987, Professor Jakes Gerwel famously declared UWC as the intellectual home of the democratic left: “If I plead and work for this University to provide an intellectual home for the left, it is not merely out of managerial expedience, thinking that it would be good for the University's orderly functioning. Universities and education generally, reproduce the social order, but it can, alternatively, educate towards and for a changed society.
And I cannot in conscience, in truth, educate, or lead education, towards the reproduction and maintenance of a social order which is undemocratic, discriminatory, exploitative and repressive, and stands universally recognised as such.”
A government representative, usually the Minister of Higher Education and Training, attends the inauguration ceremony and delivers a keynote address, as does a representative from the Student Representative Council (SRC).
In his speech, Prof Balfour highlighted the importance of UWC becoming more directly involved in the communities it serves. While he outlined a five-year plan, he also spoke about the immediate realities facing students: “Improving the conditions of our students and the delivering on accommodation for our students is important, in the context where demand for university-controlled rooms far exceeds supply, and requires a high degree of collaboration with private providers, but also transparency and accountability to students themselves.”
Addressing the UWC staff and stakeholders following his inauguration as the University’s new Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Robert John Balfour paid tribute to his predecessors for confronting the distortions of South Africa’s racist past and through their work, affirming the University as one that was resilient, a uniquely South African trait.
Here are some highlights from his speech:
• “A consequence of the intellectual and activist underpinnings of the UWC community is that we have rejected the ideas that certain forms of labour must be reserved for certain types of people, as perversions of human creativity. UWC has instead affirmed values that are core to the human condition: the creativity and generosity of the human spirit, solidarity amongst the oppressed, equal opportunity and affirmation especially of those marginalised in society.”
- “Universities do not function as businesses, and should not be viewed as such because the bottom-line is not the only balance sheet, but the generational layering of contributions to science, to arts and humanities, to care, and to development.”
- “We live and work in a place where people are poor, and unemployed, and we are a place where the marginal and the unseen look for hope for a better future and a more bearable present. Ours is not a place devoted to ideas of excellence that are destined to become the privileges of an elite: where knowledge is made to be self-serving, or where access to education is withheld. Instead UWC is proudly a place of plenty, despite a context of resource limitations, and an excellence for all because we realise that even the graduate whose personal best is a 50% pass, is able to uplift society and transform it for the better.”
- “Struggle might be the soil in which our Proteas have grown, but distinguished guests, it is resilience which is surely the flower of our prosperity.”
- “South African universities face deep structural challenges. While we can contribute to assessing those challenges and making suggestions to ameliorate them, no university can, on its own, resolve them.”
- “Freedom is never won in full or permanently. Sustaining and deepening it requires constant commitment. This in my view, is a call to us to refocus our attention on the historical legacy of the University, not as an artefact of the past, but as a set of commonly shared values forming the basis of a new research and socially informed agenda.”
- “As a University, our foremost commitment is to ensuring the future-readiness of our programmes. What is evident from government guidance on the curriculum, is that the size and shape of undergraduate to postgraduate mix requires re-conceptualisation and new vision. In this regard, the University will undertake a future-fit curriculum review.”
- Balfour also promised to locate the University’s curriculum in the experience of the surrounding communities in Bellville, Belhar, Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha.
- “Residences are home from home for our students, and our development programmes should be inclusive of privately accommodated as well as on campus students. Among other strategies, well designed, user-centred systems to enable students to evaluate and report on accommodation offered, will enable us to better monitor the quality of what is provided in the accommodation ecosystem, including the responsiveness of landowners.”
UWC Chancellor, Archbishop Thabo Makgoba
“Professor Balfour brings a wealth of experience, a commitment to inclusivity, and a deep understanding of the power of education to transform lives. As he takes up this mantle, I am confident he will uphold and further the values that make UWC an institution of excellence and impact. To our students, faculty, and staff: this inauguration is not only about welcoming a new leader but also about reaffirming our shared commitment to the ideals that define us.
Let us work together in a spirit of unity, curiosity and innovation. May we continue to build a university that remains true to its mission—one that nurtures critical thinkers, ethical leaders, and compassionate citizens. Professor Balfour, may you lead with wisdom, humility, and a steadfast commitment to justice. As you embark on this journey, be assured of my prayers and unwavering support.”
Chairperson of Council, Ms Xoliswa Buyiswa Uphindile Mpongoshe
In my culture, we say: “Umntu ngumntu ngabantu,” which means, “A person is a person through other people.” This proverb speaks to the importance of community and collaboration. As you step into this important leadership role, may these words inspire you to build partnerships and unity within the UWC community and beyond. Please know that you are not walking this journey alone, Professor Balfour. Behind you stands a community deeply rooted in social justice, inclusivity, and, above all, excellence.
Minister of Higher Education and Training, Dr Nobuhle Pamela Nkabane
UWC is generally considered as the intellectual home of the progressive politics in South Africa. I believe that Prof (Balfour), your appointment is not only timely but indeed befitting to an institution of this stature with a rich and remarkable history. You bring to UWC extensive experience in university senior management and leadership, exemplified by your previous role as the Dean and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Teaching and Learning at the University of Northwest.
Congratulations, Prof Balfour, on your new role as rector. I wish you well in your appointment to this distinguished university."
I believe that your appointment is not only timely but indeed befitting to an institution of this stature with a rich and remarkable history. I believe that UWC is in good hands under your stewardship and that together with your team you will be able to steer this institution in the right direction. I will support you and you must be assured I'm here to support you.
We also need to support, love, and cherish our newly appointed Vice-Chancellor.”
Prof Sarojini Nadar on behalf of Senate
To have a Vice-Chancellor who loves poetry, who values post-colonial thought, and who understands that language is never neutral but always political, is a profound gift to this university. We look forward to the refreshing and principled leadership you will bring - one that resonates with UWC’s commitment to knowledge that interrogates rather than simply accommodates, and to a scholarly tradition that serves the world beyond itself.
Welcome to UWC. May this be a place where you too, find the space to flourish.
President of Convocation, Mr Mangaliso Nompula
Your support and expertise will help reclaim our alumni space and reconnect the University with our esteemed alumni community.
We wish you the best with your new responsibilities and preach the spirit of collaborative effort in raising the UWC flag to even greater heights.
UWC Union Chairperson, Mr Ayanda Takane
As the workers of this institution, we want you to know that we place our hopes in you. We place our hopes in your ability to lead with integrity, to listen with empathy and to act with purpose. We place our hopes in your commitment to creating an environment where every member of this community — students, staff, and faculty alike — can thrive and contribute meaningfully to the legacy of UWC.
Chairperson of Universities South Africa, Prof Francis Petersen
As you take up this role, you do so with the trust and support of the entire higher education community. Your leadership will no doubt leave an indelible mark – not only on this institution but on the broader academic landscape. Congratulations, and may this be the beginning of an impactful and inspiring tenure.
