The University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) has received a R100-million donation from an individual donor, who is a long-time supporter of the university and who wishes to remain anonymous.

Of the overall amount, R10-million had been earmarked for the Wits Arts Museum, while the remaining R90-million would be deployed for the advancement of research and teaching, as determined by the university.

“It is a great honour for Wits to receive funding of this magnitude from a South African who has seen it fit to invest in Wits and in higher education – a sector that develops the future leaders of our country.

“We are sincerely grateful for this support, which will go a long way towards advancing the academic project and higher education in general,” commented Wits vice-chancellor and principal Professor Adam Habib.

He added that the university was still “working out” the specific details of how the funds would be spent, but noted that it was always in need of funds to attract and retain talented academics and students, as well as to support research and teaching activities.

“A distinguishing feature of this donation is also that it is unrestricted. The university leadership has been granted the autonomy to deploy this donation as it deems best to enhance teaching and research at Wits. Such donations are rare and are to be particularly applauded.

“These donations are important for Wits to remain at the cutting edge of teaching, research and service excellence, especially at a time when public funding for higher education is stagnant,” he noted.

It was unusual for universities in South Africa to receive funding of this magnitude from sole philanthropists, as the majority of their external funding was sourced from corporates, local State funding agencies, as well as international trusts and foundations.

He added that universities around the country needed more funding if they were to respond to national imperatives and remain globally competitive.

“Universities obtain their funding from three income streams – State subsidy, student fees and third-stream income. However, given the current realities, higher education institutions, and particularly research-intensive universities, are increasingly looking towards third-stream income to run top-notch universities,” he outlined.