Dr Priscilla Mensah is Director: Research Development at Nelson Mandela University. Prior to joining Mandela University, she was Director in the Human and Infrastructure Capacity Development Directorate of the National Research Foundation (NRF). She held several positions at the University of the Free State including Deputy-Director: International Academic Programmes and Deputy Director of the Postgraduate School. She served as Director for the three consecutive summer schools of the Southern African Young Scientist Summer Programme (SA-YSSP) in Applied Systems Analysis hosted at the University of the Free State from 2012-2015. A key research output from this programme was the book Systems Analysis Approach for Complex Global Challenges, published by Springer in 2018 and for which she was managing editor. She has extensive knowledge of South Africa’s Higher Education and Training landscape and the National System of Innovation. She is a specialist in systems analysis with specific emphasis on science and policy within South Africa and beyond. She holds Masters and Doctoral degrees in Chemistry from the University of Cape Town.