The Order of Mapungubwe is South Africa's highest honour. It was instituted on 6 December 2002, and is granted by the President of South Africa, for achievements in the international area which have served South Africa's interests. The order originally had three classes, and was enlarged to four in 2004:
Platinum (OMP), for exceptional and unique achievements,
Gold (OMG), for exceptional achievements,
Silver (OMS), for excellent achievements,
Bronze (OMB), for outstanding achievements.
The order is named after Mapungubwe, an ancient African nation which existed a thousand years ago in what is now the northern part of the Limpopo province.
The first recipient of the order (in the Platinum class) was ex-president Nelson Mandela.
The badge is a horizontal oval above an inverted trapezium. Inside the oval frame is depicted a golden rhinoceros with the sun rising above Mapungubwe hill in the background. The convex upper edge of the trapezium is decorated with a beadwork pattern and the sides are edged with sceptres. In the centre is an ornate crucible from which molten gold flows down to a red furnace. The South African coat of arms is displayed on the reverse.
The ribbon is gold, edged with a line of cream-coloured bead-like dots along each edge, and recurring cream-coloured rhinoceros silhouettes down the centre. All four classes are worn around the neck.
Nelson Mandela – Platinum (national reconciliation and nation-building)
Allan McLeod Cormack (posthumously) – Gold (scientist credited for co-inventing the cat-scan)
F. W. de Klerk – Gold (national reconciliation and nation-building)
Basil Schonland – Gold (physicist and founding president of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)
Peter Beighton – Bronze (research into the inherited disorders of the skeleton)
Hamilton Naki – Bronze (medical science)
Sydney Brenner – Gold (medical science)
Tshilidzi Marwala – Bronze (engineering science)
Batmanathan Dayanand Reddy – Bronze (mathematics and science)
John Maxwell Coetzee – Gold (literature)
Aaron Klug – Gold (medical science)
Frank Nabarro – Gold
Tebello Nyokong – Bronze (research into the development of cancer treatments)
Himladevi Soodyall – Bronze
Selig Percy Amoils – Silver (pioneering medical achievements)
George Ellis – Silver (mathematics and science)
Lionel Opie – Silver (knowledge and achievements in the field of cardiology)
Patricia Berjak- Silver ( Seed biologist)
Claire Penn – Silver (speech and language pathology, sign language, aphasia)
Sibusiso Sibisi – Silver (information technology, R&D)
Valerie Mizrahi – Silver (biochemistry and molecular biology, including TB drug validation)
Doris Lessing – Gold (literature, contributing to the elimination of colonialism and apartheid)
Wieland Gevers – Silver (higher education and medicine)
Phuti Ngoepe – Silver (natural sciences, development of computer Modelling studies at the University of Limpopo)
Tim Noakes – Silver
Pragasen Pillay – Silver (energy conservation)
Bongani Mawethu Mayosi – Silver (Medicine)
Johann Lutjeharms – Silver (oceanographic science, contribution to and achievements in)
Monique Zaahl – Bronze
Douglas Butterworth – Silver (betterment of the environment and sustainability of fisheries)
Pieter Steyn – Silver
Oliver Tambo Junior – Platinum (for his grandfather Oliver Reginald Tambo's anti-apartheid legacy) from President Jacob Zuma during the national orders award ceremony in Pretoria, South Africa on April 27, 2012.
Malegapuru Makgoba – Silver ("His dedication and excellent contribution to the field of science and medicine, locally and internationally; and for his contribution to the building of democracy in South Africa. He is an outstanding academic and a pioneer of transformation in higher education.")
Glenda Gray – Silver ("Her excellent life-saving research in mother-to-child transmission of HIV and AIDS that has changed the lives of people in South Africa and abroad. Her work has not only saved lives of many children, but also improved the quality of life for many others with HIV and AIDS.")
George Ekama – Silver ("His excellent research that has provided innovative solutions to enhancing and improving wastewater treatment. His important work is helping the country to find solutions to water scarcity.")
Bernie Fanaroff – Silver ("His excellent contribution to astronomy and dedication in putting South Africa on the map with the SKA Project. He is a thinker, an academic, a trade unionist and an exceptional public servant.")
Quarraisha Karim – Bronze ("Her outstanding work in the field of HIV, AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) research; and her role in health policy development that is placing South Africa on the international stage.")
Zwelakhe Sisulu – Gold ("For his exceptional contribution to quality journalism; and as a reporter exposing the cruelties of apartheid and encouraging unity among the people of different political persuasions to fight for liberation.")
