Facilitator: Dr Rakeshnie Ramoutar-Prieschl holds the positions of Acting Deputy Director- General, Technology and Innovation at the Department of Science and Innovation, where she leads the Bio-innovation; Space Science and Technology; National Intellectual Property Management Organisation; Hydrogen and Energy; and Innovation Priority Instruments. She is currently on secondment from the University of Pretoria, where she is a research associate in the Faculty of Humanities, and holds several grants, from the National Research Foundation, Department of Higher Education and Training and US Embassy to name a few. She has been the architect and driver for the UP Women in Science annual event aimed at celebrating the achievements and advancements made by women in the field. Prior to joining the University, she led the Research Infrastructure portfolio for over 11 years, at the National Research Foundation. During her tenure, she advocated for several policies, strategies and frameworks that have since provided the foundation for establishing, nurturing, and sustaining a number of RI platforms in the country. In this regard, she has published a book that aids countries in the global south to frame their own national research infrastructure roadmaps; and it is therefore not surprising that she has been appointed as the chair of the South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap Mid-Term Review Committee. She also led Phase II of the Science Granting Council’s Initiative where she has authored three manuals: (i) research and innovation excellence; (ii) research ethics; and (iii) digital grants management systems, which advocates for the safeguarding of intellectual property and know-how whilst complying with best practices in the said research areas. Over the course of her career, Dr Ramoutar-Prieschl has lectured, tutored, and mentored several researchers and university staff across several African universities, spanning Botswana, Kenya, Ghana, and Malawi; in addition to supporting capacity development needs at Historically disadvantaged institutions in South Africa. Furthermore, she has also been part of the expert team identified by the African Academy of Sciences and the Association of Research Managers and Administration in the United Kingdom to lead R&I training in the International Research Management Development Programme across universities in Africa and the United Kingdom. In recognition of her work, she has been awarded the 2022 SARIMA Excellence Award for making a distinguished contribution to the research management profession in Southern Africa. Dr Ramoutar-Prieschl has participated in the United Nations Science Technology and Innovation forum on a subject that is very close to her heart: Building Structural Equity and Inclusion in Open Science Practices and is a strong advocator for the equitable, fair, and inclusive access to information wherein she coined the concept: #UbuntuforOpenScience.