Professor Darelle Van Greunen – Information Technology – Nelson Mandela University – Create Opportunity

Womanity - Women in Unity

In this episode of Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka speaks with Professor Darelle Van Greunen Director of the Centre for Community Technologies (CCT) at Nelson Mandela University, this year’s recipient of the Science Diplomacy for Africa Award. We explore how the CCT drives social development through smart, needs-driven technology in low-income communities.

A Personal Journey to Purpose

Professor van Greunen’s journey began in 1990, when she introduced one of South Africa’s first school computer literacy classes amid scarce resources. Her path — from teaching to leading global user experience at SAP Research — revealed the deep divide between tech creators and users, shaping her belief that technology must serve people, not the other way around. This conviction led to founding the CCT in 2014.

Co-Creation and Community Impact

The CCT builds solutions with communities, not for them.

• Needs-driven design: Teams spend time in the field listening, learning, and co-developing.
• Ownership and empowerment: Communities shape the design, language, and look of tools — making them “their solutions, not ours.”

A powerful example is the School Health Assessment Tool, a mobile app that digitizes screenings for learners in rural Eastern Cape. It replaces paper forms, enables offline use, and has transformed care — even helping detect a child’s serious hearing issue early enough to change their learning journey.

For Africa, By Africans

Professor van Greunen champions the philosophy “ICT solutions for Africa, by Africans in Africa.” CCT designs tools adapted to Africa’s realities — from low connectivity to linguistic diversity. She stresses that technology designed elsewhere cannot simply be “copied and pasted” due to the continent’s unique context, including intermittent connectivity, limited infrastructure, and linguistic/cultural diversity.

• Contextual relevance: Offline-first systems, visual and voice interfaces, and multilingual support.
• Respect for Behaviour: The aim is not to make people change their behavior to use a tool, but for the tool to adapt to the behaviour of the people.(part of in Africa, for Africa by Africans – design for inclusion of real people)
• Empowerment: Building local capacity and innovation instead of importing solutions.

Opportunities for Women in Science

Professor van Greunen believes it’s an exciting time for women in ICT — diversity is now seen as a strength. Yet, barriers remain: funding gaps, limited mentorship, and a weak school-to-industry pipeline. She calls for intentional ecosystems, targeted mentorship, and early confidence-building for girls in STEM.

Legacy and Motivation

Professor van Greunen’s vision is for women to be seen not as an exception, but as an essential part of science. She hopes the next generation will lead research that transforms communities. For her, success equals impact—not titles or awards—and her desired legacy is one of hope and possibility for young women to dream and have an impact as scientists.

Her final message to women is: “Don’t wait for the moment. Create the moment. Don’t wait for opportunity to knock on the door. You create the opportunity. Use your knowledge to make the world kinder, smarter and more just. never underestimate the power of your light as a woman”

Tune in for more…