The Hendrik van der Bijl Memorial Lecture is delivered annually by a leading personality under the general theme of the role of engineering in society. It is arranged under the auspices of the South African Academy of Engineering and the University of Pretoria (of which Dr Van der Bijl was Chancellor from 1934 to 1948) to commemorate the great contribution he made to the industrial and scientific development of South Africa. The first Hendrik van der Bijl Memorial Lecture was delivered in 1963 by Dr M S Louw and since then the Lecture was delivered by many eminent persons who have made their mark in South Africa. (See list below.)