Engineering for Africa: Our Internet of Things

Our country faces many painful challenges that are tough to solve. The quality of primary education at some of our poorest communities borders on being a crime against humanity. Our levels of inequality and unemployment are unmatched globally. The realities of living in a region with water scarcity and limited energy supplies confront us daily through restrictions. The threat of climate change looms large over our collective existence on the southern tip of Africa. Our road fatalities are some of the highest in the world. The minibus taxi sector, which transports most of our commuters, is notoriously inefficient and unsafe.

Over the past decade I have been fortunate to be in a position where I can use my experience and skills in engineering to work on these challenges experienced by vulnerable communities. In this lecture, I will share several case studies from our joint work, describing both the problems and our journey towards an implemented solution.

WATCH THE INAUGURAL LECTURE HERE

Short biography

MJ (Thinus) Booysen is a professor and the chair in the Internet of Things at the Faculty of Engineering at Stellenbosch University. He has been with Stellenbosch University from 2009 and conducts research on the Internet of Things, with a focus on smart energy, water and vehicles (specifically its application to paratransit in sub-Saharan Africa). He is also a founder of BridgIoT (Bridge to the Internet of Things), the founder of Green X Engineering and a co-creator of Geasy and Count Dropula. He is the director of the MTN Mobile Intelligence Lab and a partner in the Stellenbosch Smart Mobility Lab. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a member of the Institution of Engineering Technology, a Chartered Engineer with the UK Engineering Council and a Professional Engineer (Pr.Eng.) with the Engineering Council of South Africa. He has over 10 years’ international industry experience in the aerospace and automotive industries with companies that include SunSpace, Rolls-Royce, Boeing, BMW and Jaguar Land Rover. He has supervised more than 30 postgraduate students and published more than 40 articles in journals and over 50 articles in conference proceedings.

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