Prof. Clint Rhode from the Department of Genetics, and the incumbent president of the South African Genetics Society (SAGS), led a multi-institutional delegation to bid on behalf of South Africa to host the International Genetics Federation’s premier conference, the International Congress of Genetics (ICG). The event is held every five years in different cities across the globe, and the last meeting was hosted by Melbourne, Australia, under the theme: “Genetics & Genomics: Linking Life & Society” in 2023. The conference is now set to come to the African continent for the first time in 2028 and will be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

The selection committee of the IGF executive was resolute in awarding the bid to South Africa, with the SA team outcompeting two other impressive bids from China and Argentina. Prof. Rhode remarked that hosting the ICG in 2028 will be especially meaningful for the SAGS as the society will be celebrating its 70th anniversary since being formally constituted in 1958. The bid team was supported by Stellenbosch University’s Central Events and Conferencing Office (Mrs Madeleine Mitchell) with the full endorsement of Prof. Sibusiso Moyo (DVC Research, Innovation and Postgraduate Studies) and the Cape Town and Western Cape Convention Bureau (Mr Adriaan Fourie) (with endorsement from the Western Cape Premier’s Office).