Patrice Motsepe gets Stellenbosch centennial doctorate

As part of its centennial celebrations this year‚ Stellenbosch University will award honorary doctorates to 14 thought leaders including businessman Patrice Motsepe‚ Archbishop Thabo Makgoba and veteran journalist Max du Preez.

The recipients are scheduled to receive the doctorates during the institution’s March graduation ceremonies.

Said vice-chancellor Wim de Villiers: “The recipients are esteemed local and international thought leaders. They exemplify not only graduate attributes that we aim to instill in our students‚ but also the qualities we seek to take with us into the future as we enter the second century of our existence as a leading university.”

The institution described Motsepe as a “trailblazer for responsible corporate citizenship and business entrepreneur” and Makgoba as a “voice or reason”‚ a “campaigner for equal access to education”.

Du Preez’s pen had earned him a place among the luminaries‚ it said. “[He is] a principled and uncompromising journalist and independent commentator.”

Other recipients include the founder of Gift of the Givers‚ Dr Imtiaz Sooliman‚ and former vice-chancellor of the University of the Western Cape‚ Professor Brian O’Connell.