About the Research Software Awards: The Research Software Awards rejoice people or groups who’ve developed, maintained, or prolonged analysis software program that has instantly supported analysis in SA. Two sub-categories will probably be awarded:
- Research Software – recognising contributions that advance analysis in any scientific discipline, together with humanities and social sciences
- NSTF-SADiLaR Research Software: Human Language Technologies (HLT)– recognising software program that processes, understands, or analyses human language in written, spoken, or signed kind within the South African context.
The awards acknowledge numerous contributors to analysis software program, from postgraduate college students and researchers to analysis software program engineers, computational scientists, knowledge scientists, and digital humanists, whereas selling greatest practices in openness, sustainability and collaboration.
“Research software is the invisible infrastructure that drives discovery across all fields of science and scholarship,” stated Ms Jansie Niehaus, Executive Director of the NSTF. “These awards will shine a light on the often-unseen contributions of software developers and researchers whose work underpins SA’s innovation ecosystem.”
A nationwide collaboration to recognise digital analysis infrastructure: SADiLaR helps the brand new award category as a part of its nationwide mandate underneath the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap (SARIR) to strengthen digital analysis infrastructure and promote the reuse and sustainability of digital analysis belongings. SADiLaR’s funding permits the launch of the award for the 2025/2026 NSTF-South32 Awards cycle.
Prof Langa Khumalo, chief director of SADiLaR, stated: “Human Language Technologies are central to digital transformation in SA. Through this award, we celebrate the ingenuity and collaborative spirit of our research software community, from the sciences to the humanities, and reinforce the importance of sustainable, locally relevant innovation.”
The UCT eResearch Centre, the South African companion of the Software Sustainability Institute’s 2026 version of the International Research Software Engineering Survey, performed a number one function in conceptualising the award standards.
“UCT eResearch is honoured to have hosted the inaugural Research Software Symposium and the launch of the new award,” stated Prof Mattia Vaccari, director of UCT eResearch. “The strong participation from across disciplines highlights a growing national community of research software stakeholders. Partnering with the NSTF and SADiLaR to launch the award at this gathering helps raise awareness of research software as vital infrastructure and is expected to encourage nominations in the 2025/2026 NSTF-South32 Awards cycle.”
Towards a sustainable analysis software program ecosystem: The Research Software Awards replicate the rising recognition that sustainable and well-engineered analysis software program is crucial for transparency, reproducibility, and long-term accessibility in analysis. This initiative aligns with nationwide priorities underneath the Decadal Plan for Science, Technology and Innovation (2022–2032) of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI), and with worldwide efforts to strengthen digital analysis infrastructure.
Nominations for the NSTF-South32 Awards opened on 20 November 2025, and winners will probably be introduced on the annual Awards Gala Event deliberate for July 2026. By recognising excellence in analysis software program improvement, the initiative goals to strengthen SA’s rising analysis software program group of apply and guarantee continued alignment with world developments in open science, digital analysis infrastructure, and innovation.
About the NSTF-South32 Awards: One of the foremost NSTF actions is its flagship annual NSTF-South32 Awards –SA’s ‘Science Oscars’. The Awards had been established in 1998 as the primary of its variety nationally. 2025 was the twenty seventh 12 months that the NSTF offered awards to the highest scientists, associated professionals, practitioners, groups and organisations concerned in science, engineering, know-how (SET) and innovation. South32 is the co-branding sponsor, so during the last ten years the identify of the awards has been the NSTF-South32 Awards. It can also be the nationwide science awards which are totally open and collaborative.
Furthermore, as a part of the NSTF Brilliants Programme, there’s recognition of these prime Grade 12 performers in bodily science and arithmetic who went on to check in STEM programs, in addition to focused interventions to advertise the winners’ work via outreach to the general public and the youth, via the NSTF Share ‘n Dare Programme. (STEM = science, know-how, engineering and arithmetic.)