Privacy Notice

1. Who we are

The PhD Challenge is a national platform for South African PhD holders, developed collaboratively by the Business Incubation Web Association (BIWA), Nelson Mandela University, GrowthWheel® South Africa and Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies, and held on 19–20 November 2026 at the Nelson Mandela University Science Centre, Gqeberha.

The responsible parties for personal information processed through the PhD Challenge are BIWA and GrowthWheel® South Africa. The Information Officer is contactable at thesis@phdchallenge.org.za.

2. What we collect, and why

Personal information collected through the pre-screening registration form, this website and the programme itself is limited to what is necessary for eligibility assessment, screening, event administration, judging, communication and programme development. We do not collect personal information for unrelated purposes.

In practice this means your name and contact details, your institution and doctoral qualification, a description of your research and its enterprise potential, and any access, dietary, travel or documentation preferences you tell us about.

3. Our lawful basis for processing

Processing is based on your consent, obtained at application, and on legitimate interest where necessary to administer the competition, for example internal eligibility verification. Consent is specific to each purpose. Ecosystem sharing and longer retention each require separate, optional consent. You may withdraw consent at any time by contacting the Information Officer (section 11); withdrawing consent may mean we can no longer process your application.

4. Who else sees your information

Personal information is shared with third parties only where necessary for an identified programme purpose, and never beyond what that purpose requires. BIWA, Nelson Mandela University, GrowthWheel® South Africa and Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies receive only the information their role requires, under written agreements that prohibit further use; the funder receives aggregate data by default.

Your research profile and contact details may be shared with universities, research institutions and professional associations; government agencies and state-owned enterprises; incubators, accelerators and industry; civil society organisations; and funders, investors and philanthropists, but only where you have opted in for that recipient category and limited to what you have approved. Your information is never sold.

Registration form data is collected and stored by our registration provider under their own terms and security arrangements. Our website loads typefaces from Google Fonts, which may record your IP address as part of serving those files.

5. Who has access

The Information Officer has access to all personal information. Day-to-day access is otherwise limited to the Information Officer and, where necessary for programme delivery, the Screening Committee (pitch@phdchallenge.org.za). The Screening Committee sees applications during screening only. Judges see the application content needed to score, but not contact details or accessibility information. GrowthWheel® mentors see only their assigned participants’ canvas and action plan.

Everyone with access signs a confidentiality undertaking and a conflict-of-interest declaration. Accessibility and language requests may reveal health or disability information; they are collected only with explicit consent, used only to provide the requested provision, and deleted once it has been delivered.

6. How long we keep it

Applicants: 12 months from application, then securely deleted or de-identified. Alumni and ecosystem database: only where you have separately opted in, until you withdraw. De-identified cohort data may be kept indefinitely. Retention required by law overrides these periods.

7. Your rights

Under POPIA you may:

• ask what personal information we hold about you, and request a copy;
• ask us to correct or delete information that is inaccurate, irrelevant, excessive, out of date or obtained unlawfully;
• object to the processing of your information;
• withdraw your consent, or withdraw your application entirely;
• complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa.

Requests are acknowledged and actioned as soon as reasonably possible in accordance with POPIA. There is no charge for making a request.

8. Security and data breaches

We apply reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, unauthorised access and unlawful processing. Any data breach, unauthorised disclosure or conflict of interest affecting participant information is assessed and, where required, reported to the Information Regulator and to affected data subjects as soon as reasonably possible after discovery, in line with section 22 of POPIA.

9. Recording and livestreaming

Pitches are recorded or livestreamed only with the participant’s consent. Recording and livestream consent is requested separately on the registration form and can be withdrawn by contacting the Information Officer before the event.

10. Your intellectual property

Participation does not transfer, license, waive or in any way diminish your intellectual property rights. The PhD Challenge claims no ownership, licence or right of first refusal over any participant's IP. Where your research arose from publicly funded R&D at a South African institution, any disclosure or assignment obligations under the IPR Act (2008) and your university's TTO or NIPMO framework remain between you and your institution.

11. Contact us

Privacy requests and questions about this notice. Our Information Officer:
thesis@phdchallenge.org.za

Anything else about the Challenge:
pitch@phdchallenge.org.za