De Wet Swanepoel
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Expertise
Biography
De Wet Swanepoel is a distinguished South African professor of audiology at the University of Pretoria, known for pioneering digital health and teleaudiology innovations to improve hearing care access in underserved communities globally. He directs the WHO Collaborating Centre for the Prevention of Deafness and Hearing Loss and serves as Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Audiology. As lead inventor and co-founder of hearX Group, he has developed award-winning smartphone-based hearing test solutions used in over 25 countries. His work focuses on leveraging information and communication technologies to decentralize ear and hearing healthcare, particularly for low-income populations. He has published over 280 peer-reviewed articles and six textbooks, with over 12,000 citations.
Education
B. Communication Pathology (cum laude)
University of Pretoria
2000
M. Communication Pathology in Audiology (cum laude)
University of Pretoria
2002
D. Phil (PhD) in Communication Pathology
University of Pretoria
2005
Languages
Awards
- 🏆International Award for Hearing - American Academy of Audiology (2025)
- 🏆University of Pretoria Chancellor's Award for Research (2023)
- 🏆National Research Foundation A-rating (2022)
- 🏆Member of the Academy of Science of South Africa (2021)
- 🏆Olusegun Obasanjo Prize for Scientific Breakthrough - African Academy of Sciences (2020)
- 🏆Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (2020)
- 🏆SASLHA Fellowship Award (2019)
- 🏆Oppenheimer Memorial Trust Award (2019)
- 🏆Silver (S2A3) British Association Medal - Royal Society of South Africa (2016)
- 🏆TWAS Young Scientist National Award in Basic Sciences, Technology and Innovation (2014)
- 🏆Faculty Researcher of the Year - Applied Social Sciences Cluster, University of Pretoria (2014)
- 🏆National Research Foundation President's Rating (2013)
- 🏆NSTF-BHP Billiton Award (2013/14)
