Team - UVU Bio 1

UVU Bio is a platform for biotech entrepreneurs to turn ideas into creative solutions

Team - UVU Bio 2
Dheepak Maharajh

Dheepak Maharajh

Dheepak Maharajh, Cluster Head at BioCiTi, joined the team in June 2021. Dheepak is an accomplished science and engineering specialist with over 25 years’ experience in developing biotechnology concepts at lab scale and transferring these to pilot and commercial scales. He is a registered Professional Natural Scientist (Pr.Sci.Nat) and holds Masters degrees in Bioprocess Engineering and Business administration from Stellenbosch University and Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) respectively. Dheepak has delivered on multiple projects funded by both private and public sectors and led numerous projects to completion during his career. Dheepak thrives at the interface of science and business and is passionate about helping start-ups transitions their business concepts into commercial realities and enjoys mentoring young science and engineering professionals to help them realise their full potential. Dheepak’s vision is to count BioCiTi amongst the likes of international biotechnology incubators that are the most sought-after business incubators that start-ups want to partner with to get their scientific concepts to the market.

Team - UVU Bio 3
Dr Anesu Conrad Moyo

Dr Anesu Conrad Moyo

Dr Anesu Conrad Moyo is a PhD graduate in Biotechnology from the University of the Western Cape. He worked as a laboratory manager during his Masters in Applied Biotechnology and Microbiology studies at the National University of Science and Technology in Zimbabwe. He continued to work as a laboratory manager at the Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics (IMBM) while conducting his PhD research on the application of pigmented halophilic bacteria for the treatment of desalination brine effluent generated from mine wastewater. In 2018, Anesu was one of the winners of the OneBio student entrepreneurship competition for his concept on the production of high value carotenoids from desalination brine effluent, which solidified his passion for bio-entrepreneurship. He joined the BioCiTi team in September 2019 and is responsible for the smoot running of the Laboratory and ensuring the scientists accessing the BioCiTi labs are well taken care off.
Team - UVU Bio 4
Riana Slight

Riana Slight

Riana Slight is a seasoned administrator with 7 years’ experience in the field. She started her journey at Cape Innovation & Technology Initiative (CiTi) in 2019 and soon after joined the Entrepreneurial Development & Incubation team in CiTi as Account Coordinator. Riana joined the BioCiTi Labs team as Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator in 2021 where she is responsible for all administrative tasks, and all monitoring and reporting to key stakeholders. Riana is passionate about her work and ensures she delivers efficiently to all our stakeholders; her number one priority is making a difference in BioCiTi.
Team - UVU Bio 5
Siyamthanda Wotini

Siyamthanda Wotini​

Siyamthanda Wotini, is a recent Diploma in Biotechnology graduate from CPUT and is BioCiTi’s  Quality Control Intern. She is responsible for monitoring and maintaining the quality procedures in the lab and related equipment. She is passionate about Microbiology and Biotechnology and has ambitions to complete a PhD in Microbiology.

Our members
Mzansi Meat : Mzansi Meat develops lab cultivated meat by cultivating the cell types present in meat – muscle cells, fat cells, connective tissue, etc. – through a cell culture platform, using cells sustainably derived from commercially relevant species and then safely growing these cells to produce sustainable meat products.
Biotikum : Biotikum is a spin-out company of the University of Stellenbosch that research, develops and produces microbial additives for the agricultural industry to improve operations in a sustainable manner. Agri-microbial solutions include host-specific animal probiotics, microbial silage inoculants, and soil inoculants.
Africa Secret : African Secret uses sustainably sourced and scientifically proven indigenous botanicals for multi-functional personal care products.
Clone Labs : Clonelabs aims to produce high quality pathogen-free medical cannabis clones generated through a proprietary micro-propagation process.
Algae Holix : Algaeholix Grow and process high value microalgae all year round starting with astaxanthin producing algae (H. pluvialis).
Gourmet Grubb : GourmetGrubb is a food science-based company whose primary product is oat milk as a dairy alternative
D Chem Group : D Chem Group is a detergent and cosmetic manufacturing company with an interest in refining and repackaging traditional medicine
4D Therapy : 4D Therapy creates virtual reality videos for the treatment of mental health disorders through artificial intelligence, text-to-speech, and speech recognition.
SK Botanicals : SK Botanicals is a start-up producing multifunctional botanical skincare products made from indigenous plants and is halal and vegan friendly.
Elysium Skincare : Skincare manufacturer using natural essential oils and other ingredients.
Silimela Innovations : Silimela Innovations focuses on commercialising high-science in the agro-medical space. Its primary goal is to develop expertise in precision farming and bioprocessing so as to expand how plants can produce fine chemicals, pharmaceuticals and bio-active products.
Indalo Bio : IndaloBio R&D aims to be the best cancer genomics centre on the African continent. IndaloBio also offers COVID-19 testing.
Gracious Nubian : Gracious Nubian designs, develops and manufactures an innovative reusable sanitary pad that is biodegradable.
Rossouwinotech : RossouwInotech is a hardware prototyping and technology company offering services to the health and related industries.
Pro-Skin Cosmetics : ProSkin Cosmetics manufactures skin care products from natural components such as aloe.
TS Expo Mushroom : TS Expo Mushroom produce and sell Organic Fresh exotic Mushrooms.
Community Health Foundantion : Community Health Foundation is an NPO which provides the South African public with remote healthcare monitoring and the ability to upload, store and manage their own and their family’s health information.
Optwel : Optwel was founded in 2018 by an innovative Medicinal Chemist, PhD. The company identified the need to unravel the convoluted science behind healthcare supplements and educate people about condition-specific wellness through nutrition.
Our Funders & Partners
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Team - UVU Bio 8
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Team - UVU Bio 11
UVU Africa is a Non-Profit Company with a mission to build future-fit, inclusive societies through technology and innovation.

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