Back to Home Page

  Director: Professor Oswald Mhlanga
Tel: 031 373 5508
Email: oswardm@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus
Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3317-8764  
 
Bio:Professor Oswald Mhlanga is a holder of a Doctoral Degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management from CPUT. His research focus is in restaurant and hotel operations, the digital economy and the aviation industry. He is passionate about the digital economy in hospitality. This is illustrated by his research-informed teaching which embeds home sharing (Airbnb) into the hospitality curricula. These are all geared towards adding a pan-African dimension to hospitality epistemologies, as well as to the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) agenda in Africa.
Professor Mhlanga has managed to build bridges among continental universities where hospitality management is promoted as an academic discipline. He has over the past 5 years published over 50 scientific articles in local and international journals. As of 10 November 2020, Professor Mhlanga has 277 Google Scholar citations, an h-index of 10 and an i10-index of 12.  He is also a board member of several local and international journals in the Hospitality and Tourism domain. Responding to the mushrooming euphoria of COVID-19 hospitality related research, Professor Mhlanga is currently using Paradox research, as a meta-theory and/or methodology, to support the hospitality industry with COVID-19 informative research. Incorporating paradox research into COVID-19 research may also be inevitable, as the COVID-19 circumstances, impacts and debates have uncovered and intensified existing paradoxes, but also generated new ones.
  Secretary: Thandeka Duma
Tel: 031 373 5508
Email: ThandekaD2@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Ms Thandeka Precious Duma brings a passion for business and information management to her role as Secretary. With a strong commitment to empowering people and organizations, she focuses on delivering effective solutions and reliable support to help teams thrive.
  WIL Coordinator: Silungile Mncwabe
Tel: 031 373 5508
Email: silungilem@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Ms Silungile Mncwabe holds a Master’s Degree in Marketing Management from the Durban University of Technology and is pursuing her LLB in UKZN. Ms Mncwabe is very passionate about reaching out and making a different into students’ lives, one can misunderstand her into being a social worker. She is responsible for coordinating student placements in diverse environments to support the successful completion of their training.
DRC Chair: Associate Professor Reshma Sucheran
Tel: 031 373 5821
Email: munnir@dut.ac.za
Location: Durban
Campus: Ritson Campus
 
Bio:Professor Reshma Sucheran is an Associate Professor and Research Chair in the Department of Hospitality. With an academic career spanning three decades, she has made significant contributions to sustainable tourism development, climate change mitigation, and environmental management within the tourism sector. Professor Sucheran holds a PhD in Geography and Environmental Management. Her academic journey has been complemented by extensive professional training, including short courses in environmental law, statistical analysis, research ethics, and geographical information systems, undertaken at prestigious institutions such as the University of Michigan. Since joining DUT in 1997, Professor Sucheran has been pivotal in advancing tourism education and research. Her teaching portfolio includes undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Sustainable Tourism Development and Planning, Climate Change and Environmental Management for Tourism, Research Methodology, and Tourism and Crisis Disaster Management.As a Research Chair, she supervises master’s and doctoral students, advises on research ethics, and promotes multidisciplinary research initiatives.
 
Her leadership roles include leading the CoP in Tourism and People2People Exchange in the BRICS Research Institute, Faculty Research Committee, Departmental Research Chair, and serving on several national and international committees. Professor Sucheran’s research focuses on critical areas such as sustainable tourism, climate change impacts, waste, water, energy management, CSR, and crisis management in tourism. She has published extensively, with 19 journal articles, six book chapters, and an edited book, Sustainable Waste Management in the Tourism and Hospitality Sectors (2025). She has worked on collaborative research projects in Australia, Vietnam, Portugal, India and Russia and has presented at numerous international conferences. Professor Sucheran is also actively involved in professional bodies, serving as an editorial board member for journals like the BRICS Journal of International Relations and Development and the International Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Management. Her contributions have been recognised with multiple awards, including the Faculty of Management Sciences Researcher of the Year Award – Gold Status (2022) and grants from the DUT Women in Research and Innovation Program and the Erasmus+ KA107 program.
  Senior Lecturer: Dr. Rekha Maniram
Tel: 031 373 5415
Email: rekham@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus
Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0716-8928
 
Bio: Dr. Rekha Maniram is an academic, credited with almost three decades of diverse higher education experience. Attaining a Ph.D. in Business Education from UKZN, recently, she has begun with postgraduate supervision and presented papers at both National and International conferences. Her research interests include Hospitality Finance; Authentic learning; and Entrepreneurship. At present, Dr. Maniram serves at various structures of the university.
 default-avatar-e1448374196642 Lecturer: Dr. Nduduzo A. Ngxongo
Tel: 031 373 5515
Email: ndunduzoN3@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2461-8732
 
Bio:Dr. Nduduzo A. Ngxongo is a Lecturer, WIL Coordinator, and Programme Coordinator in the Tourism Programme, as well as the Departmental Research Chair in the School of Hospitality and Tourism. He holds a PhD in Hospitality and Tourism from the Durban University of Technology (DUT), where he teaches Advanced and Postgraduate Diploma students in subjects such as Project Management, Regional Tourism Geography, Technological Applications, and Research Methodology & Project. He is also involved in supervising research students at the Postgraduate, MSc, and PhD levels. Currently, Dr. Ngxongo is pursuing a second postgraduate qualification in Geography and Environmental Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand. His primary research interests lie at the intersection of tourism and climate change. Specifically, his work focuses on recent historical events and the complexities of climate change, its associated threats, and the impacts that are affecting the sustainability of the tourism sector. He investigates the potential for mitigation and adaptation strategies (including the challenges involved) to address climate change and variability across KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), with an emphasis on their implications for the tourism industry.
  Lecturer: Dr Sasi Gangiah
Tel: 031 373 6515
Email: sasig@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5485-1861 
 
Bio: Dr Gangiah has a Master’s and MPhil in Food Service Management and Dietetics. She is a leader in the field of Food Service Management at the Durban University of Technology. She is publishing a book on “Environmental Ergonomics: Commercial Kitchens in a Semi-Tropical City”. She has won the Dean’s Award as a Top Researcher in 2021. As a PTL for Catering, her activities focused on maintain zero infection rate in kitchen practicals and decolonisation. Her work also includes pollution during cooking in commercial kitchens as well as in rural areas with cookstoves. She has been involved in franchising Indian restaurants in South Africa. She is an Advisory Board member of Sports Performance Assessment Rehabilitation Research Counselling Institute (SPARRC), India.
  Lecturer: Nozipho Prudence Sibiya
Tel: 031 373 5512
Email: NoziphoS@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Nozipho Prudence Sibiya is a lecturer in the Tourism Program. She has a Master’s Degree in Tourism and Recreation (MRT), as well as, a Bachelor of Education degree. She is currently pursuing her PhD studies specializing in Hospitality and Tourism. Her research focus areas include Community Based Tourism, Events Tourism and Tourism Education. She lectures Tourism Marketing, Events Management and Service Excellence to Tourism Diploma students. She also lectures Advanced Services Management to Advanced Diploma students. She is the curriculum development champion for the Tourism Diploma and Advanced Diploma qualification programs in the Tourism Program.
  Lecturer: Dr Zanele Mabaso
Tel: 031 373 5384
Email: mabasoz@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Dr Zanele Mabaso joined DUT in 2008 as an Ecotourism lecturer based in the Midlands Riverside campus. Thereafter, in 2015, she was transferred to the Hospitality and Tourism department at the Ritson campus in Durban. She has 14 years lecturing experience in Tourism Development, Management and Entrepreneurship. Zanele holds a Master’s Degree in Tourism development and management and currently completing her PhD in female leadership in Higher Education.
 default-avatar-e1448374196642 Lecturer: Munnir Shaw
Tel: 031 373 5821
Email: munnir@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Mr Mohamed Munnir Mohamed Shaw is a Tourism Lecturer in the department. Munnir holds a Master of Philosophy Degree, as well as Master’s Degree in Tourism Management. He is also a PG diploma holder in Psychological counselling. His passion for teaching in tourism has led him to study various courses in aviation, tourism and events. He has 25 years of teaching experience and industry experience. Munnir is currently pursuing his PhD at DUT.
  Lecturer: Dawn Sihle Khuluse
Tel: 031 373 5662
Email: dawnk@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6206-4355
 
Bio: Mrs Khuluse is a lecturer with over 20 years of lecturing experience in the Department of Hospitality and Tourism at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) in Durban, and at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) in Cape Town. She is an alumnus of DUT where she holds a Master of Applied Sciences in Food & Nutrition and currently registered for Doctor of Philosophy in Management Sciences (Specialising in Hospitality).Dawn’s teaching and learning portfolio extends to various undergraduate subjects at DUT and at (CPUT). Her area of specialisation includes Culinary Studies, Hygiene and Nutrition. This sparked Dawn’s research interests which stretches across areas of food safety, hygiene practices and the nutritional value of food served by vendors. She has also shared and presented this valid research at a local conference in Durban. As part of her research Dawn has published three research articles thus far, two were published by South African journals and one by an International Journal.
  Lecturer: Ronelle Crocker
Tel: 031 373 5505
Email: ronellek@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Ronelle Crocker joined DUT as a Hospitality and Catering Management Lecturer in 2010. She holds a Degree of Master of Management Sciences specializing in Hospitality and Tourism from DUT. Her core functions at DUT include lecturing, student academic administration and curriculum development. She also has many years of lecturing experience in Food facilities planning and Food Safety. Her research interests are in the field of food safety, food waste and food security.
  Lecturer: Thobelani Nxumalo
Tel: 031 373 5530
Email: thobelanin@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6188-3001
 
Bio: Thobelani is a Lecturer in Hospitality with over 14 years industry and lecturing experience. He holds a Degree of Master of Management Sciences specializing in Hospitality and Tourism from DUT. Besides lecturing, Thobelani oversees curriculum development and stakeholder engagement within the department. As a PhD candidate at NWU, Thobelani’s research interest include internal branding, service quality, and behavioural intentions.
  Lecturer: Nokuthula Thandeka Nyezi
Tel: 031 373 3126
Email: Nokuthula@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus  
 
Bio: Miss Nokuthula Thandeka Nyezi holds a Master of Management Sciences in Hospitality and Tourism and is currently pursuing a PhD in Management Sciences, specializing in Hospitality. Since beginning her academic career in 2018, she has taught a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate modules, focusing on key areas such as hospitality operations, accommodation management, culinary arts, front office, housekeeping, and service excellence. Her teaching philosophy is rooted in student engagement and academic support, with a strong commitment to helping students excel both academically and professionally. Her research interests complement her teaching and doctoral studies, focusing on indigenous foods, food service management, and sustainable hospitality practices. Miss Nyezi is passionate about higher education and dedicated to nurturing the next generation of hospitality professionals through an inclusive, supportive, and transformative learning environment.
  Lecturer: Raeesah Khan
Tel: 031 373 5394
Email: RaeesahK1@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 
 
Bio: Mrs Raeesah Khan is a proud Alumni of the Department of Hospitality and Tourism and joined as a lecturer in 2020. Her qualifications include ND: Catering Management (Cum Laude), BTech: Hospitality Management, Masters in Management Sciences: Hospitality and Tourism from DUT. Acquiring both national and international industry experience, Mrs Khan then ventured into education as a school educator in the Senior and FET phase. She thereafter progressed to private higher education and is now finally home at DUT. Areas of academic interest include Culinary Arts with pastry specialisation, Information systems, Events management, and Consumer protection.
  Lecturer: Mathabo Mpitso
Tel: 031 373 5508
Email: MathaboM@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 
 
Bio: Mathabo Mpitso has 11 years’ work experience, 2 years industry experience (worked internationally at the Ritz Carlton hotel) and 9 years teaching. She holds PGCE (UNISA), MBA (TUT), BTECH Hospitality (TUT), and NDIP Hospitality (TUT). Research interests are in hygiene, health & safety, and education.
  Restaurant Manager: Joanne Mjoka
Tel: 031 373 5526
Email: JoanneM@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 
 
Bio: Joanne Mjoka joined DUT in 2019 and is currently a Restaurant Manager of the Hotel School Restaurant and Conference Centre in the Department of Hospitality and Tourism. She joined the University of Zululand in 2012 as a laboratory assistant, laboratory Technician and part-time lecturer in 2014-2016 and lectured Culinary Studies, Meal Planning and Management, Quantity Food Production, Food and Beverage. She has 13 years of experience in the Hospitality industry. Her qualifications include N4 Management Assistant, B Consumer Science (Hospitality and Tourism), Hons (Hospitality Management). She is currently busy with her Master’s Degree and currently possesses four publications. Her field of interest in research is food and beverage, food safety and hygiene in the foodservice and hospital sector. Her specialization and skills are in Food health and safety, foodservice operation and management, food analysis, indigenous food product development, restaurant management, housekeeping, and events management.
 default-avatar-e1448374196642 Executive Chef: Phiwokuhle Selomane
Tel: 031 373 5525
Email: PhiwokuhleS@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 
 
Bio: Phiwokuhle Selomane is the executive chef at the Durban University of Technology’s Hotel School Restaurant & Conference Centre. He has obtained a diploma in culinary arts, B-Tech in Hospitality Management, including several short course programmes in a career spanning over 19 years. Phiwe had the opportunity to work in several sectors of hospitality establishments at home and abroad namely in hospitals, cruise liners, Michelin restaurant, safari, private further education, hotels, casino & higher education.
  Technician (Food Stores): Nompumelelo W. P. Mncube
Tel: 031 373 5444
Email: Nompumelelom9@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 

Bio: Mrs Nompumelelo W.P. Mncube is a graduate from the Hospitality and Tourism department holding a National Diploma in Catering Management. She has fourteen years of experience in industry, including five years spent abroad, where she worked both in the back and front of house.She was also a lecturer at Thekwini TVET College for 4 years.She is currently employed by DUT as a Technician in the Hospitality and Tourism Stores. Her role in the Department is to purchase, receive and issue daily food and beverage requirements to the kitchens, restaurant, and the Conference centre. She also oversees the smooth running of all functions associated with perishable stock and equipment.
  Lab Assistant: Philani Blessing Buthelezi
Tel: 031 373 5529
Email: philanib@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus
 
Bio: Philani Blessing Buthelezi worked in various food industries operations before joining the Hotel school in 2012 January as a Function Chef on a contract basis. In 2016, he became a kitchen lab assistance on a permanent post. Philani has completed the National Diploma in Carting Management and B-Tech in Food & Beverage management. Philani is currently pursuing his Master’s Degree specializing in Hospitality. Philani have a passion in pastry, especially the chocolate art.
  Lab Assistant: Tholakele Mzobe 
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 
 
Bio: Mrs Tholakele Mzobe is a DUT Alumni of the Department of Hospitality and TOURISM. She has joined DUT as a Laboratory Assistant in 2014. She holds an undergraduate National Diploma in Catering Management, Advanced Diploma in Business Administration, Postgraduate Diploma in Adult Education. She is currently perusing a Master of Education in Adult Education at UKZN. She has a vast experience totalling to over 25 years in both FIVE Star Hospitality outlets and Lecturing at private and public TVET Colleges. She enjoys working with students and assisting them to identify ingredients and working hand in hand with the designated Lecturer in kitchen Laboratory with stock maintenance, FIFO.
  Lab Assistant: Asnele Simelane
Tel: 031 373 5559
Email: AsneleS@dut.ac.za
Location: Hotel School
Campus: Ritson Campus 
 
Bio: Asnele Simelane joined DUT in 2019 as Kitchen Laboratory Assistant. Am involved in assisting the students in the kitchen and make sure kitchen preparation before practicals commence. Completed a National Diploma in Catering Management, Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration.