S
tellenbosch University distinguished professor
and research chair Prof Umezuruike Linus
Opara has been elected as the incoming president of the International Commission of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (Commission Internationale du Génie Rural or CIGR). It is the worldwide
umbrella agricultural engineering organisation, and
consists of a network of regional and national societies
of agricultural engineering as well as private and public
companies and individuals globally.
Prof Opara was elected to the position during the recent International Conference on Agricultural Engineering held in Denmark and organised by the European
Society of Agricultural Engineers under the auspices of
the CIGR.
The election means that he will first serve on the Presidium of the CIGR for two years as incoming president,
before taking up the position as president around
2019. He will then serve the CIGR for another two years
as past president. Prof Opara is the first engineer from
sub-Saharan Africa to be elected into this position and
his term coincides with the 90th anniversary of the
CIGR.
He will juggle his new responsibilities in tandem with
those placed on him as holder of the DST-NRF South
African Research Chair in Postharvest Technology at
Stellenbosch University and as distinguished professor
in the Department of Horticultural Science.
Prof Opara, who has been a SU staff member since
2009, is a recipient of the 2016 African Union Kwame
Nkrumah Continental Scientific Award for senior researchers. He qualified as an agricultural engineer from
Engela Duvenage
universities in Nigeria and New Zealand, and serves on
numerous international committees and editorial
boards. He is a fellow of the South African Institution
of Agricultural Engineers. Prof Opara is also the founding president of the Pan African Society for Agricultural
Engineering (AfroAgEng), which was established during
a CIGR International Technical Symposium held at Stellenbosch University in 2012.
His multi-disciplinary research team is the leading
group worldwide working on postharvest practices that
improve the postharvest handling, packaging and marketing of pomegranate fruit. His research group also
tests and develops packaging and quality control methods relevant to the handling and storage of fresh fruits
and vegetables such as table grapes, citrus and apples.
These efforts are focused on alleviating unnecessary
food loss and waste, maintaining quality and adding
value in the fruit and vegetable sector.
Although Stellenbosch University does not have a degree in agricultural engineering per se, Prof Opara says
he is looking forward to using the new opportunity
presented to him. He hopes it will help to deepen and
strengthen the contributions of engineering and related programmes at SU in the agriculture, food and related sectors.
“The work of individual SU staff and postgraduate students in these areas are widely recognised by our peers,
locally and internationally,” he says. “Through collaboration and co-supervision we have several PhD and
MEng students registered in the faculties of Engineering and AgriSciences working on different research topics in agricultural and biosystems engineering.”
Prof Linus Opara (left) of Stellenbosch University with the immediate CIGR past president, Prof Tadeusz
Juliszewski of Poland. Photo: Supplied