“VUT celebrates 60 years of excellence, reflecting on highlights from its Diamond Jubilee Gala Dinner, Minister Buti Manamela’s keynote address and Strategy 2033+.”
28 July 2026 | Story by: Tayron Mhlongo | Picture: Peter Masela
5 minutes read time.
The night Vaal University of Technology (VUT) had long awaited finally arrived on 23 July 2026. Under the theme, “60 Years of Excellence: Honouring Our Legacy, Shaping the Future,” the University marked its Diamond Jubilee at a Gala Dinner held at Pont de Val.
Government leaders, alumni, industry partners, higher education stakeholders, staff and students gathered to celebrate six decades of teaching, research, innovation and service, while signalling a clear plan for the years ahead.
The evening featured a moving commemorative video that traced VUT’s story from its establishment in 1966 to the present day. Archival photographs gave way to scenes of modern laboratories, workshops and lecture halls. Voices of students, alumni and staff bridged the past and present, illustrating how a University that began modestly has grown into one of South Africa’s leading Universities of Technology.
The programme reflected VUT’s enduring strength: producing industry-ready graduates, advancing practical research, driving innovation and building partnerships that benefit communities and the nation.
Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Professor Khehla Ndlovu, anchored the evening with an address that blended celebration, honesty and vision. He opened by explaining the significance of the blazer he wore, a garment designed by Fashion Design student Ms Rirhandzu Nobunga after she won a University competition. Ms Nobunga used her prize money to pursue an Advanced Diploma, while fellow student Ms Lerato Makete designed the Jubilee logo.
“Sometimes talent is not out there, but it’s inside,” Professor Ndlovu said, using the students’ achievements to demonstrate how VUT identifies, develops and gives expression to talent. He stressed that when students see real value in their studies, they gain both skill and purpose.
Professor Ndlovu framed the Diamond Jubilee as more than an anniversary. It was a rare moment where past, present and future met: an opportunity to honour the founders and reflect honestly on the University’s journey.
“Tonight, we celebrate six decades of lives changed through education,” he said, paying tribute to academics, professional staff, researchers and alumni who have carried VUT’s values into industry, government, classrooms, laboratories and communities.
He also acknowledged the importance of institutional renewal, calling on the VUT community to learn from past challenges and build a healthier, more accountable institution for future generations.
Practical responses to these challenges were central to Professor Ndlovu’s address. He outlined a programme of renewal that goes beyond bricks and mortar, including initiatives to expand flexible access, improve student support services, strengthen research capacity and modernise facilities.
At the heart of this vision is the new VUT Science and Technology Park in Sebokeng. The Park is intended to become an innovation ecosystem where students, researchers, entrepreneurs, industry and government can come together to design, test, refine and commercialise ideas.
“This is how a university of technology turns knowledge into products, processes, enterprises and jobs,” Professor Ndlovu explained, emphasising that such initiatives will strengthen regional economies while creating new opportunities for graduates.
In his keynote address, Minister of Higher Education and Training, Mr Buti Manamela, echoed these priorities and placed VUT’s milestone within a broader national context. He congratulated the University on six decades of service that have gone beyond qualifications to change households, strengthen communities and contribute to national development.
The Minister praised VUT for producing graduates who translate learning into real-world impact. He said the University must continue to measure success through tangible outcomes: skilled graduates in employment, start-ups emerging from campus research and improved livelihoods in surrounding communities.
Minister Manamela set out three priorities for VUT’s next decade: strong governance and operational excellence; a distinctive role in linking knowledge to production; and a skills revolution that ensures curricula remain current, portable and closely aligned to employer needs.
He emphasised that stability, clean procurement, accountable leadership, well-maintained laboratories and quality student residences are essential to protecting academic quality and public trust. He further urged VUT to translate research into products, processes and jobs, while preparing graduates for a rapidly changing economy.
“Tonight we honour those who built this institution; tomorrow the work continues,” Minister Manamela said, challenging leaders, staff and partners to share a common purpose and to be measured by their contribution to skills development, employment, industrial renewal and social equity.
Voices from across the VUT community reinforced the evening’s themes. Representatives from the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (NEHAWU), the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU), student leadership, the Institutional Forum and Convocation offered messages of support and reflection.
Deputy Chairperson of Council, Ms Jackie Manche, and VUT Chancellor, Mr Vincent Mntambo, delivered formal congratulations that balanced pride in the University’s achievements with a call for continued stewardship and responsibility.
Student stories added a human dimension to the celebration. The blazer and logo competition winners symbolised a wider reality: many students arrive at VUT with talent and hope, and leave with practical skills, confidence and a pathway into meaningful work.
Alumni in attendance spoke of their contributions to industry, government, education and entrepreneurship, demonstrating how a VUT education translates into tangible economic and community benefit. These accounts reinforced the University’s commitment to inclusion, access and equipping every student to succeed.
As the evening came to a close, the message was hopeful and resolute. Sixty years of achievement provide a strong foundation, while Strategy 2033+ offers the blueprint for the next chapter.
VUT’s future will rest on homegrown talent, practical innovation and collaborative partnerships that connect education directly to industry and communities. The Diamond Jubilee was not only
a celebration of what VUT has been, but a clear declaration of what it intends to become: a University that shapes skills, drives innovation and helps build a more equal, productive South Africa