Prof Jean M-S Lubuma received his PhD from the Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium in 1985 and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Abdus-Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Italy from 1989-1991.  Since then, he worked and visited many prestigious universities and research institutions. He is currently a Distinguished Professor in the School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. He is also an Emeritus Professor at the University of Pretoria, where he has had a distinguished academic career since 2000. He was Dean of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences from 2015-2019. Prior to this, he was the founding Chair Holder of the DST/NRF SARChI Chair in Mathematical Models and Methods in Bioengineering and Biosciences from 2013-2015. He served from 2004-2013 as Head of the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics. 

After he joined the University of Pretoria in 2000, Prof Lubuma initiated a very successful research group, which has an excellent track record of outstanding visitors.  His research interests include the numerical analysis of ordinary and partial differential equations and integral equations, with the  emphasis on differential equation models that occur in engineering, applied science and life science, specifically the epidemiology of infectious diseases. With time, the visibility of the group has significantly increased thanks to the establishment of more linkages and partnerships with prestigious research centers locally and overseas such as the Centre for Research in Computational and Applied Mechanics-CERECAM (University of Cape Town), the Centre for Agricultural Research for Development-CIRAD (France), the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences-BAS, and the Simon Levin A. Mathematical, Computational and Modelling Sciences Centre-MCMSC (Arizona State University, USA).

Regarding differential equation models that arise in Engineering and Physics, Prof Lubuma has made significant contributions to the understanding of domain-singularities of boundary-value problems as well as to the design of innovative and reliable finite/boundary element methods for such problems.

On the other hand, Prof Lubuma got involved in the area of nonstandard finite difference (NSFD) method founded by R Mickens at an early stage, when the techniques were still empirical.  He was the first mathematician to develop the method and working on the mathematical justification of the success of these empirical procedures became a research focus for him and his co-workers. Prof Lubuma has introduced many researchers to this area.  He has made many significant contributions to the theory of the NSFD schemes as well as to the design and implementation of several innovative numerical schemes that replicate the dynamics of a wide range of differential equation models that arise in applications.

Investigating the relevance and impact of NSFD schemes on biological processes is a major focus of Prof Lubuma’s work. He has dealt extensively with the constructive treatment of dynamical systems,  advection reaction diffusion equations, delay differential equations and Volterra integral equations. He produced reliable numerical simulations for the corresponding natural systems such as: cancer growth, interacting species, enzymatic reactions,  mutant- gene propagation, honeybee colony collapse disorder, biofilm-forming microbes in porous media, conservation laws, and disease transmission. Regarding the latter point, Prof Lubuma has distinguished himself in the modelling of the transmission dynamics and control of several emerging and re-emerging human infectious diseases of major public health importance such as Cholera, COVID-19, Ebola, Hepatitis B, HIV/AIDs, Malaria, MERS, Syphilis and Tuberculosis.

Prof Lubuma has published widely in prestigious journals on areas ranging from integral equations, domain-singularities and mathematical biology, as summarized in the following statistics: more than 90 peer-reviewed journal papers, most of them being in ISI journals; 1 edited book; 7 chapters in books; 27 published full-length refereed conference papers and 15 keynote addresses.

The impact of Prof Lubuma’s research publications is high.  For instance, his 2001 article (paper no 21 on the list of publications below) on the theory of NSFD schemes, published in Numerical Methods for Partial Differential Equations, is seminal, particularly in the mathematical modeling in Biosciences where it is widely cited (328 citations, Google Scholar: 27 August 2024). The impact can also be measured by the positive peer-reviews available in MathSciNet, the main database for mathematics, produced by the American Mathematical Society, as well as by the following international metrics as of 27 August 2024: h-index of 19 and 1231 citations, excluding self-citations from 1987-2024 (ISI Web of Science); 692 citations by 371 authors from 1987-2024 (MathSciNet); h-index of 17 and 1313 citations excluding self-citations from 1999-2024 (Scopus); h-index of 29, i10-index of 60 and 2798 citations from 1987-2024 (Google Scholar). Prof Lubuma is excellent in networking. He has productive collaborations, which led to publications, with more than 55 researchers globally (MathSciNet). Furthermore, Prof Lubuma has been invited to participate in major international conferences as guest speaker, member of scientific committees and organizer of symposia. For instance, he represented the African Continent at the 10th Blackwell-Tapia Conference (9-10 November 2018, Brown University, Providence, USA) where Ronald Mickens was the Laureate of the prestigious Blackwell-Tapia’ award. Prof Lubuma gave a keynote address on Ronald Mickens’ scientific contribution to Africa.

Prof Lubuma has initiated several research projects and attracted substantial funding, totalling to date about R 64 million i.e. USD 3.4 million from various bodies such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation,  National Research Foundation, the  First Rand Foundation, the International Centre for Theoretical Physics-ICTP (Italy), UNESCO and the Third World Academy of Sciences. 

Prof Lubuma has contributed to make science work in Africa in general and in South Africa in particular. He was Head of the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics at the University of Pretoria from 2004-2013. He has trained several postgraduate students and visited several research centers of excellence.  He has taught and developed a variety of courses at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.  In this regard, he initiated and / or coordinated successful postgraduate programmes at the University of Pretoria such as : (a) The DHET/Teaching Development Grant Collaborative Project: Strengthening Academic Staff Development in Mathematical and Statistical Sciences in South Africa; (b) The Pilot Master’s and PhD Programme in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, and (c) The ICTP PhD Programme in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics for the SADC region. 

Prof Lubuma is (Associate) Editor of Afrika Matematika (Springer), Journal Biomath (Springer), Mathematics and Computers in Simulation (Elsevier), and the Journal of the Nigerian Mathematical Society (Elsevier). He renders a vital service to the scientific community through his extensive involvement as a referee for several journals.  He also played a significant role in the development of some policy documents such as the Strategic Plan of the University of Pretoria for 2025 and the effective incorporation of the Mamelodi Campus of the then Vista University into the University of Pretoria.

Awards and recognitions received by Prof Lubuma include the following:

• A-rated scientist by the National Research Foundation (NRF) from January 2020 (The NRF defines the A-category as follows: Researchers who are unequivocally recognised by their peers as leading international scholars in their field for the high quality and impact of their recent research outputs) ;
• Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS);
• Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa (RSSAf);
• Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Sign of Honor awarded on 19 June 2013 ;
• South African Mathematical Society Award for Research Distinction 2011;
• Member of the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAF) ;
• Fellow of Die Suid- Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns (SAAWK) ;
• Convener of the NRF specialist Committee for Mathematical Sciences from  2008- 2009 .
• University of Pretoria Exceptional Academic Achiever for four consecutive periods: 2007-2009, 2010-2012, 2013-2015 and 2016-2018.
• Regular and Senior Associate Member of the ICTP-Italy (1992-1999 and 2000-2005).