µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø

Aroop Chatterjee leads the research agenda on wealth inequality at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies. Aroop is currently developing a strategy to bring disparate streams of related research across disciplines and countries under the lens of wealth inequality. He is also focused on using new and existing data to develop wealth distribution in South Africa. Previously he was the senior economist on labour issues at the National Treasury of South Africa and was intimately involved in policymaking and analysis of the labour market, including the Employment Tax Incentive, and the National Minimum Wage.  He has an MSc Development Economics with distinction from the School of Oriental and µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø Studies, a BSc Economics from the University College London. He is also a Chartered Accountant.

Arabo K. Ewinyu is a researcher at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies working on the Pre-distribution and Ownership project, whose work focuses on providing evidence-based research on how to intervene in the productive segment of the economy to generate equitable outcomes. Arabo has a Master of Commerce in Economics Degree from the University of Witwatersrand. Previously, she has worked as a researcher at the DPRU (University of Cape Town) and before that, she worked as a consultant, gaining crucial experience in collecting, evaluating and analysing data and qualitative economic information for clients across diverse sectors of the economy. She is currently enrolled as a PhD candidate through the SOAS-Wits Joint PhD Programme in Applied Development Economics. Her research interests include labour market dynamics, poverty and inequality studies, and Competition and Regulatory Economics.

Avela Njwambe is an Associate Researcher on the Intersectionality research project at SCIS. A feminist and gender activist, she has previously worked for JASS (Just Associates), as a Monitoring, Evaluations, and Learning ( MEL) coordinator and has supported the building of feminist movements by collecting data that focuses on women’s lived experiences. Avela has also previously worked as a research officer for the South µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø Social Policy Research Institute SASPRI) and the National Planning Commission under the Enhancing Quality of Life  (EQL) workstream (a custodian of the National Development Plan).  She has also worked for the frontline service delivery monitoring under the Citizen-Based Monitoring Unit – a unit that empowers citizens to demand transparency and accountability from leadership in government. She holds an MA in Anthropology from Rhodes University. 

Comfort Molefinyana is an Associate Researcher on the Wealth Inequality project. She holds a Master of Public Policy (MPP) from the University of Auckland in New Zealand. Previously, she worked as a consultant conducting applied research in the public sector. She has contributed to implementation and impact evaluations including government management systems, public procurement, municipal tariffs, public employment programmes, agriculture, and health. Comfort has co-authored published work in public procurement (BBBEE) and the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG). She has a Bachelor of Social Sciences degree in Politics and Public Policy, and an honours degree in International Relations, both from the University of Cape Town. Her research interests include social and gender policy, inequality, and social protection.

David Francis is a Senior Researcher at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies. His research interests focus on labour market economics, the informal economy, and inequality. He was the researcher for the Advisory Panel on the minimum wage in South Africa. He has previously worked as a development consultant, and a policy and budget analyst at South Africa’s National Treasury, where he worked in health and social policy. He has a PhD in economics from Wits University, an MA in development studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, and a bachelor of social sciences in economics and history from the University of Cape Town.

Dr Fazila Farouk is a researcher on the Alternatives to Development: Innovation, Inequality and Change programme. Fazila is an economic sociologist whose PhD focused on inequality in the digital economy. She has a PhD in Sociology from the University of Cape Town and an MSc in Development Studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. She is the founder and former publisher of the . Following SACSIS' closure, Fazila pivoted from civil society policy advocacy to scholarly and policy research on the digital economy, working in both academic and think tank spaces. Her research interests include the intersection of innovation and inequality, social impact technology and alternatives to market-led innovation in the digital economy. She is the author of the Substack publication: , which explores the relationship between technology, innovation and social inequality.

Geci Karuri-Sebina is as an Associate Professor at the University of Witwatersrand associated with the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies, Tayarisha Digital Governance Research Group, the MIND Institute, and the Civic Tech Innovation Network. She is the ICESCO Chair on Innovation and Futures in Africa. Geci’s research interests lay in the intersections between people, place, time and technological change.  She holds Bachelors degrees in Computer Science and Sociology (Iowa); Masters degrees in Architecture and Urban Design, and in Urban Planning (UCLA); and a PhD in planning and innovation studies (Wits University). She is a Desmond Tutu µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø Leadership Fellow.

Glen Robbins is a visiting researcher on climate change and inequality at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies. He has worked in various capacities in government and on contract with various multilateral organisations. He has also been a lecturer as well as a research associate at a number of universities, including the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the University of Cape Town. His research and policy work has focused primarily on matters of urban and regional economic change as well as on issues pertaining to South Africa’s industrial policy. He holds an MPhil in Development Studies from the University of Sussex

Julia Taylor is a Researcher on Climate and Inequality at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies. Previously, she was Researcher and Climate Policy Lead at the Institute for Economic Justice where she worked with labour unions on a vision for a Just Transition. Julia has previously worked at Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator on impact and research, sustainability consulting, and eco-education. She holds a BCom from the University of Cape Town, a PGD in Sustainable Development from Stellenbosch University, and an MSc in Environment and Development from Edinburgh University. Julia recently completed a Master’s in Applied Development Economics at Wits University.

Justin Visagie is an Associate Professor at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies (SCIS) at the University of the Witwatersrand. His research focuses on urban and regional economies, industrial policy, and spatial inequality, with a strong emphasis on using administrative data to inform inclusive and evidence-based development. Before joining SCIS, he served as Chief Research Specialist at the Human Sciences Research Council and Director of Economic Planning in the Eastern Cape Government. Justin has published widely on cities, migration, and firm productivity, and collaborates with international and local partners including the International Science Council, World Bank, National Treasury and across Local Government.

ResearchGate: 

Orcid ID: 

Katrina Lehmann-Grube is a researcher on the Climate Change and Inequality Project at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies. She holds a BSc in Applied Biology, Ecology and Evolution from the University of Cape Town and an MSc in Environment, Politics and Development from the School of Oriental and µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø Studies (University of London). She is currently completing a PhD in Sociology at Stellenbosch University. She has worked in a range of civil society and research roles at the intersection of environment and social justice.

Niall Reddy is a Senior Researcher in the Pre-Distribution and Ownership Project. He has a BSc in Economics from the University of Cape Town, a Master's in Political Economy from Kingston University and Paris13. In addition to this, he holds a Master's degree in Sociology from New York University, and he completed his Ph.D. dissertation in the same department. Before undertaking graduate studies, Niall worked as a researcher and educator for the Alternative Information Development Centre in Cape Town. He has worked on a range of topics in the field of political economy, including financialisation, growth models and demand regimes and the politics of elites. His work has appeared in Socio-Economic Review, The Review of Keynesian Economics, Jacobin Magazine, among others.

Nishal Robb is a Researcher on the Climate and Inequality Project. Prior to joining SCIS, he worked as an Economist at Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (TIPS) and the Centre for Competition, Regulation and Economic Development (CCRED) at UJ, and as National Training and Organising Coordinator at Equal Education (EE). Nishal has an MSc from SOAS, University of London, and BA Hons (Economic History) and BSocSci (Politics, Philosophy and Economics) from UCT. He has done research on a range of topics including the history of South Africa’s clothing industry; the financialisation of South µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø firms and implications for structural transformation; illicit financial flows and industrial development in South Africa; and agrarian change and the South µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø maize value chain.

Pinaki Chakraborty is a former Director of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), New Delhi, and is currently a Visiting Distinguished Professor at the same institute. He served as the Economic Adviser to the Fourteenth Finance Commission of India. He has also worked at UNICEF as Chief of Social Policy and as Chief of the Field Office for UNICEF in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, India.

Ruth Castel-Branco is a Senior Researcher on the Future of Work Project. She has a BA in Geography and µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2005), an MA in Development Studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (2012) and a PhD in Sociology from the University of the Witwatersrand (2021). Previously, Ruth worked at the International Labour Office in Mozambique on social and maternity protection. She first became interested in questions of labour as a student activist, eventually cutting her teeth as a labour organiser at DC Jobs with Justice. Ruth is an alumnus of the International Centre for Development and Decent Work and a fellow of the Open Society Foundations’ Inequality Fellowship. Her research interests include agrarian transformation and the changing nature of work, (informal) workers’ rights and organization, the redistributive role of the state and social protection.

Rozeena Das is an Associate Researcher on the Future of Works project. Previously, she worked as a researcher at the Centre for Researching Education and Labour (REAL). Rozeena holds a Master's degree in Labour and Economic Sociology, an Honours degree in Sociology, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology, all awarded by the University of the Witwatersrand. Her research interests include gendered labour, social reproduction, unpaid work, the just transition, and the changing nature of work.

Sonia Phalatse is an economist with experience in the private and public sectors. Previously, she worked as the Economic Justice Lead for the largest women’s rights organisation in Africa, the µÚÒ»³Ô¹ÏÍø Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET). Prior to that, she worked as a researcher concurrently in the Climate, Energy and Infrastructure and Feminist Economics programmes. She has a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Witwatersrand and received both her Bachelors and Honours degree in Economics from the University of Cape Town. Her research interests are in feminist economics, feminist political ecology, energy economics and the role of the state in development.

Siphelele Ngidi is an Associate Researcher on the Labour Market Project at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies. He holds an MCom in Economics, Honours in Economics, and a BCom degree in Economics, Finance, and Marketing from the University of KwaZulu Natal. His research interests include labour economics, health economics, and the economics of higher education. Siphelele has previously worked as a teaching and learning coordinator at the University of the Free State. He was previously employed as an academic development officer and an ad hoc economics lecturer at the University of KwaZulu Natal.

, a Senior Researcher at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies (SCIS). She works with the ‘Wealth Inequality and Elites’ research stream at SCIS. Her research interests include economic elites, caste, race, and gender in India and South Africa. Her research in India unpacks how a business caste called Agarwals reproduces in Delhi with a focus on the gender question. In South Africa, she has researched property elites (landowners and property developers) involved in the making of a Waterfall City. Currently, she is a Co-PI on an ESRC project titled ‘Transnational Elite Communities and the Reproduction of Inequalities’ in Mumbai, Johannesburg, and London.