NRF Youth Month 2026: Dr Lindokuhle Malibongwe Ngema

The NRF is committed to growing South Africa’s next generation of researchers and science communicators. June is Youth Month, and this year the NRF celebrates the youth whose work contributes to meaningful change in South Africa and beyond. We thank all participants for sharing their stories with us.

Dr Lindokuhle Malibongwe Ngema is an nGAP Lecturer in African Traditional Medicine at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He received funding from the NRF for his Master’s, PhD and postdoctoral studies.

Tell us about your academic journey

My academic journey has been shaped by a deep curiosity about science, health, and the development of therapies that can improve people’s lives. Growing up, I was always fascinated by how medicine works, and I knew that I wanted to pursue a career in medicine or science so that I could contribute meaningfully to healthcare.

I began my academic journey at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), where I completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry and Microbiology, then Honours in Biochemistry, and a Master’s of Medical Sciences in Pharmaceutical Chemistry, for which I graduated cum laude. My Master’s research strengthened my interest in drug development, which led me to pursue a PhD in Pharmaceutics at the University of the Witwatersrand, where my work focused on targeted drug delivery systems and nanotechnology-based therapeutics for cancer.

Today, as a lecturer and researcher in African Traditional Medicine at UKZN, my work combines pharmaceutical sciences and indigenous knowledge systems to advance evidence-based African therapeutic innovations.

How has your affiliation with the NRF impacted your studies/career?

The National Research Foundation (NRF) has played a significant role in my academic and professional development by providing funding opportunities that enabled me to pursue postgraduate training and research.

I was awarded the DSTI-NRF Innovation and Priority Research Areas Master’s Scholarship in 2018, which supported my Master of Medical Sciences degree. I was then awarded the NRF-DAAD Joint In-Country Doctoral Scholarship in 2020 for my PhD. During my PhD, I was also awarded the Fulbright Scholarship to conduct part of my research at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Medicine in the USA, which was partly funded by the NRF.

The NRF further supported my post-PhD training through the DSTI-NRF South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI) Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Wits Advanced Drug Delivery Platform, under the supervision of Prof Yahya Choonara, who held the SARChI Chair in Pharmaceutical Biomaterials, Drug Delivery and Nanomedicine. During this time, the NRF also funded my participation in the University of Cambridge’s Maxwell Centre for Technology Innovation Impulse Programme, which was the “first in-country” partnership between the NRF and the University of Cambridge, UK.

Beyond academia, NRF support also gave me confidence and motivation as a young South African scientist. It affirmed that young researchers from diverse backgrounds can contribute to world-class science when given the right opportunities and support.

What is your research focus or area of expertise?

My current research focuses on the integration of pharmaceutical sciences and African traditional medicine to develop innovative and evidence-based therapeutic solutions for both communicable and non-communicable diseases. I am particularly interested in advanced drug delivery systems and how they can be used to improve the efficacy, safety, stability, and targeted delivery of bioactive compounds derived from medicinal plants and conventional therapeutics.

Currently, within the African Traditional Medicine discipline, I am expanding this expertise towards the scientific validation and pharmaceutical development of African indigenous medicinal products. My research aims to bridge indigenous knowledge systems with modern biomedical and pharmaceutical technologies by incorporating natural products and medicinal plant-derived compounds into advanced delivery systems to enhance therapeutic performance and translational potential.

What purpose drives your research/work, and how do you hope it will contribute to meaningful change?

The main purpose that drives my research is the desire to develop innovative, accessible, and impactful healthcare solutions that can improve the quality of life for people, particularly in underserved communities.

My work is driven by the belief that Africa possesses immense scientific potential through both its people and its indigenous knowledge systems. I believe that the integration of indigenous medicinal knowledge with advanced drug delivery technologies can unlock new opportunities for affordable and culturally relevant healthcare solutions.

I hope my work will contribute meaningfully to the advancement of translational health research, strengthen evidence-based African traditional medicine, and help position African scientific innovation within the global research landscape.

Being a young researcher can be demanding. What keeps you motivated and grounded throughout your journey?

Being a young researcher can indeed be demanding, especially in highly competitive and rapidly evolving scientific environments. Honestly, what keeps me motivated is the understanding that research has the power to improve lives and create lasting impact in society. Knowing that the work I do could contribute towards better therapies, stronger healthcare systems, and scientific advancement gives me a strong sense of purpose and responsibility.

I am also motivated by curiosity and the continuous opportunity to learn. Science is a field where there is always something new to discover, and I find great fulfilment in solving complex problems, developing innovative ideas, and collaborating with people from different disciplines and backgrounds. The opportunity to contribute to areas such as nanomedicine, drug delivery, and African traditional medicine continues to inspire me because these fields have significant potential to address pressing health challenges, particularly in Africa.

Meanwhile, what keeps me grounded is remembering where I come from and the broader purpose behind my work. I value humility, continuous growth, and collaboration, and I understand that scientific progress is a collective effort. Maintaining strong relationships with family, mentors, colleagues, and students also helps me stay balanced and focused.

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