Summerstrand building bought as centre for blue economy initiative

SETTING up a new R60-million ocean sciences campus at NMMU has moved further ahead with the purchase of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research building, close to the main campus.

NMMU spokeswoman Zandile Mbabela said the official transfer of the Summerstrand property was the culmination of two years of planning and strategising.

“This effectively catapults the already advanced work towards the establishment of the envisaged marine and maritime-related hub.”

The new campus, set to be launched next year, is to focus on the country’s least explored economic resource – its oceans.

“The blue, or oceans, economy has become a major focus for South Africa, with the government’s massive Operation Phakisa initiative pushing to unlock and effectively tap into the largely untapped oceans economy by capitalising on the country’s 3 200km coastline,” Mbabela said.

“NMMU has significant research capabilities in maritime and ocean sciences. It is also well positioned in Algoa Bay and boasts proximity and access to two major ports, effectively boosting its potential as a major player in the blue economy.”

Mbabela said the Ocean Sciences Campus would not house all of the university’s maritime programmes, but would instead have a postgraduate focus so as not to duplicate existing courses that tie or feed into ocean sciences.