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The North West University campus
The construction of North West University’s Desmond Tutu school of medicine has started, at the institution’s Potchefstroom campus.
The project is a collaborative effort between the university, the North West Department of Health, and the private sector. The former Minister of Health, Joe Phaahla, granted written permission to the university to proceed with the establishment of the medical school in December 2023.
The school is intended to address the shortage of medical professionals.
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• NWU Desmond Tutu School of Medicine partners with NW DoH
• Vice-ChanceProf Bismark Tyobeka appointed SABS Board Chairperson
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• Joubert Schoeman helps SA win Mauritius Sevens#MyNWU #NWUExcellence pic.twitter.com/6e7dd1WUXn— NWU – North-West University (@theNWU) July 4, 2025
Professor Binu Luke, who is the project lead of the medical school, says it will be able to accommodate more than 400 students.
“This building is planned for a maximum intake of 150 students. The students will be here in the first three years. That means this building will cater to the teaching of 450 students,” says Luke.
He says they had initially planned to get to 80 and then to 100 students per year.
“You can train on the foundation disciplines, but you also need to make sure that clinical training platform can hold the maximum number of students,” adds Luke.
“Our health facilities in the province will open its doors for training of these medical students and as a predominantly rural province, the school will contribute to among others rural retention, which will improve health equity and promote research focus on the specific health challenges of our communities in the province,” says spokesperson for the provincial health department, Tebogo Lekgethwane.
