Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa (PAMSA)

The Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa (PAMSA) was established in 1992 and represents more than 90% of South Africa’s pulp, paper, board and tissue manufacturers, according to a provider record checked in August 2026. PAMSA supports its members on shared, pre-competitive issues such as environmental matters, education and training, and research and development.

Registered name

Paper Manufacturers Association of South Africa (PAMSA)

Type

Industry association (pulp, paper and tissue)

Fields funded

Master’s in chemical engineering

Website

thepaperstory.co.za

Paper as a renewable product

PAMSA’s public campaign, The Paper Story, argues that paper, pulp, packaging and tissue come from sustainably farmed wood fibre, a renewable resource, and that most paper can be recycled into new packaging and tissue. PAMSA also points out that papermaking and recycling support livelihoods, and explains how recycled paper goes through several processing steps before it reaches a mill.

PAMSA says nearly every career has a place in the paper industry, from chemical engineers and researchers to machine operators, lawyers, business development officers and software engineers.

A 16-year master’s programme

PAMSA’s Master’s in Engineering Bursary and Research Programme has run for 16 years to build a pipeline of chemical engineers for the pulp and paper sector. The two-year bursary is worth R320 000 and supports full-time postgraduate study and research at one of four universities: North-West, Stellenbosch, Pretoria and the Witwatersrand. Final-year BSc or BEng chemical engineering students and recent graduates can apply.

Jane Molony, PAMSA’s executive director, describes the industry as rooted in renewable wood fibre, recycled fibre, process efficiency and the circular bioeconomy, and says bursars’ projects can advance resource efficiency, waste-to-value innovation, bio-based materials and renewable fuels.

Research by past bursars

Past projects show the range. Qiniso Ngiba, a 2020–2021 Stellenbosch graduate, researched converting lignin from waste pulping liquors into slow-release nitrogen fertilisers. Lerato Tau at the University of Pretoria uses thermogravimetric analysis to study how paper materials respond to heat, delivering results in hours rather than days. Kelly Campbell at Stellenbosch is exploring fermenting food waste into ethanol.

Timing

Applications for the 2027–2028 programme closed on 12 June 2026. Expect the next call around May or June 2028, since each intake funds two years.

How to research PAMSA

Read The Paper Story’s articles on recycling and the circular bioeconomy, and talk to chemical engineering lecturers at the four participating universities about pulp and paper research groups.

See our chemical engineering bursaries and the Sappi Bursary.