When Dr Ntshengedzeni Alfred Nevhutanda was invited to deliver a paper at the annual Caspian Oil and Gas congress in June this year, little did he know that the position of professor in the field of environmental science would be conferred on him by the International Eco-energy Academy of Azerbaijan.

According to Nevhutanda, the purpose of the congress was to asses the impact of oil and gas in the Caspian region, as well as in other countries. After the congress, his paper titled Sustainable Development through Oil and Gas in Africa: Lessons from countries of the Caspian region, was rated the best amongst the more than 300 papers presented by scholars, academics and scientists from across the world.

He said that the theme at the congress was Energy, Ecology, and Economy. Nevhutanda said that on the last day of the ninth annual congress, professors with knowledge of energy, ecology and economy rated his paper as one of the best for the congress. "My achievement came after all my professional papers had been evaluated by a committee of scholars from Azerbajan, Russia, Germany and Japan. I want the majority of young South Africans to view my achievement as a challenge to them," he said.

Nevhutanda, who was born at Duthuni village in 1953, passed the then standard 8 at Phiriphiri Secondary School in 1976. The following two years, he went to Mphephu Secondary School to study maths and science. At that stage, Nevhutanda was not a bright learner.

He passed his grade 12 with an FS symbol and failed his first year at the former Venda College of Education (Veco) in 1979. As a result, Nevhutanda, who was raised by two illiterate parents, decided to join Old Mutual as an insurance representative in 1980 until 1984.

"Though I failed at Veco, I continued to further my studies while working at Old Mutual. I also worked at Phiriphiri and Nngweni Secondary Schools," he said.

From 1988 to 1998, Nevhutanda worked at the now defunct Makhado College of Education as a lecturer. This was after he had furthered his studies with the University of South Africa (Unisa). He received his first junior degree through Unisa for Higher Education in 1989.

Through dedicated studies, Nevhutanda received doctorates in music and education and also a master of business administration. Nevhutanda served as the chairperson of the ruling ANC in the 1990’s. In 1999, he was deployed to the provincial legislature as the MPL, heading the committee for sport, arts, culture, education and transport. He also served as chairperson of the Limpopo Operating Licensing Board and participating in the taxi recapitalization process. "Since 2005 until now, I have been the national chairperson of the operating licensing board," he said.