NOTE: Postdoctoral fellowships are intended for applicants who have recently (within the past 5 years) completed their PhD and who do not have a long-term contract or permanent academic role. A postdoctoral fellow cannot hold employment elsewhere, and a postdoctoral fellowship is different to a sabbatical visit. 
Join an interdisciplinary research programme shaping how African governments use technology, foresight and innovation to build responsive, future-ready public institutions.
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Host
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Tayarisha Research Initiative on Digital Governance
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Location
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Wits School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
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Duration
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12-month fixed-term fellowship, renewable subject to funding and performance
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Applications open
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Monday, 24 August 2026
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Closing date
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Friday, 11 September 2026 (23:59 SAST)
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Start date
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Thursday, 1 October 2026
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Tayarisha is the Initiative on Digital Governance, established in 2021 at the University of the Witwatersrand. It is a hub for teaching, research, policy dialogue and outreach on the challenges and opportunities that digitisation brings to the public sector, society and industry across Africa. Tayarisha operates at the intersection of government, business and society, focusing on regulation, public policy and ethics. It contributes to the public good by conducting rigorous, cutting-edge research, providing world-class education, and contributing to public debate on digitisation.
Tayarisha works as a networked hub — connecting, hosting and convening experts and initiatives around the mission of digital transformation and anticipatory governance, with the aim of becoming the premier community of resources in this field across Africa. Its work looks at digital governance both from a governance angle (how digitalisation transforms government policy, service delivery and institutional capability) and a public policy angle (how government, the private sector and civil society relate to each other, and the ethical and developmental implications of that).
Enquiries: Zibusiso.Manzini-Moyo@wits.ac.za
Applications are invited to apply for a prestigious two-year Hillel-Friedland Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience (SBIMB), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. The successful candidate will join the Cancer Genetics Group and contribute to research investigating the genetic basis of breast cancer in African populations.
The researcher will contribute to a research project entitled: “Genetic risk and tumour biology of breast cancer in populations of African ancestry”
This project will involve the analysis and interpretation of unique genomic datasets, including targeted sequencing of breast cancer cases and controls of African ancestry using a panel of cancer genes, as well as whole-exome sequencing of breast tumours and matched blood samples. The fellow will apply bioinformatics, statistical genetics and human genetics approaches to identify genetic determinants of breast cancer susceptibility, tumour biology and clinical behaviour. These datasets provide a unique opportunity to investigate both inherited susceptibility and tumour genomic profiles in populations that remain underrepresented in global cancer genomics research.
The fellowship offers an excellent opportunity to work within a multidisciplinary research environment and to contribute to high-quality research, scientific publications, and future grant applications.
The postdoctoral fellow will:
Applicants should have:
The Sydney Brenner Institute for Molecular Bioscience (SBIMB), within the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), is a leading multidisciplinary research institute dedicated to understanding the genetic and molecular basis of health and disease,
with a particular focus on African populations. The Cancer Genetics Group, led by Professor Christopher Mathew, is an internationally collaborative research team with expertise in cancer genomics, statistical genetics, bioinformatics, computational biology, and molecular epidemiology.
The successful Fellow will join a vibrant and interdisciplinary research environment investigating the genetic and molecular basis of cancer in African populations through genomic data analysis, statistical genetics, computational biology, and translational cancer research. Working alongside clinicians, molecular biologists, pathologists, and computational scientists, the Fellow will benefit from dedicated supervision and mentorship, opportunities to analyse large-scale genomic and multi-omic datasets, publish in leading journals, present at international conferences, contribute to postgraduate supervision, and develop an independent research profile in cancer genomics and precision medicine.
Please submit:
Submit your application through this link: https://forms.gle/BUAa9JZ88JbZ1xeZA
Contact sbimb@wits.ac.za and jocelyn.gayenga@wits.ac.za if you have trouble with the link.
Additional details:
The fellowship offers support for two years, with the possibility of extension depending on performance and funding availability. For further information, you may contact Dr Brandenburg: Jean-Tristan.Brandenburg@wits.ac.za
The University is committed to employment equity. Preference may be given to appointable applicants from the underrepresented designated groups in terms of the relevant employment equity plans and policies of the University. The University retains the right not to make an appointment and to verify all information provided by candidates. Please note that correspondence will only be entered into with shortlisted candidates. The University reserves the right not to make an appointment or to re-advertise.
UNESCO Chair in Teacher Education for Diversity & Development at the University of the Witwatersrand invites expressions of interest from outstanding early-career researchers for Postdoctoral Fellowships in the following focus areas in higher education:
These two-year, full-time postdoctoral fellowships, based in Johannesburg, offer a unique opportunity to conduct high-impact transdisciplinary research that collaboratively engages partners within the University, leverages global academic and industry partnerships, and extends to stakeholders such as government agencies, community organisations, and international research networks to address complex societal challenges.
Funding: R340,000 per annum for a fixed, consecutive two-year period.
The fellowship will remain open until filled.
Interested candidates should complete the application form: https://redcap.link/UNESCOWits_postdoc_2026
For queries, please contact Professor Nicole De Wet-Billings (Senior Director: Academic Affairs), Nicole.dewet-billings@wits.ac.za
The Global Higher Education Futures (GHEF@Wits) at Wits invites expressions of interest from outstanding early-career researchers for Postdoctoral Fellowships in the following focus areas in higher education:
These two-year, full-time postdoctoral fellowships, based in Johannesburg, offer a unique opportunity to conduct high-impact transdisciplinary research that collaboratively engages partners within the University, leverages global academic and industry partnerships, and extends to stakeholders such as government agencies, community organisations, and international research networks to address complex societal challenges.
Funding: R340,000 per annum for a fixed, consecutive two-year period.
The fellowship will remain open until filled.
Interested candidates should complete the form here: https://redcap.link/ghef_postdoc_2026
For queries, please contact Professor Nicole De Wet-Billings (Senior Director: Academic Affairs), Nicole.dewet-billings@wits.ac.za
The School of Mining Engineering at the University of the Witwatersrand invites expressions of interest from outstanding early-career researchers for Postdoctoral Fellowships in research areas in both surface and underground mining such as:
The two-year, full-time postdoctoral fellowships, based in Johannesburg, offer a unique opportunity to conduct high-impact, interdisciplinary research at one of Africa’s leading mining schools, working closely with academic hosts across various disciplines and expertise.
Funding: R350,000 per annum for a fixed, consecutive two-year period.
The fellowship will remain open until filled.
Interested candidates should complete the application form.
For queries, please contact the Head of School of Mining Engineering at Paseka.Leeuw@wits.ac.za.