Prof Nedson Pophiwa

Associate Professor
Name: Nedson Pophiwa
Location: D Ring 512B Auckland Park Kingsway Campus
Anthropology and Development Studies Staff  Staff Members

Contact Details:
Tel: 011 559 3425

Email: nedsonp@uj.ac.za

About Prof Nedson Pophiwa

Nedson Pophiwa is an Associate Professor in the discipline of development studies at the University of Johannesburg. He holds a PhD in Economic History from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, an MA in Forced Migration Studies from Wits University, an MA in African Economic History, and a BA Hons in Economic History, both from the University of Zimbabwe. An economic historian by training, Nedson uses contemporary history methods and inter-disciplinary social science approaches to unpack current trends and challenges in governance, public policy and development.

Nedson’s work experience spans public, development, and academic sectors. Prior to joining UJ, he was a Senior Lecturer at the Wits School of Governance where he taught several modules in the field of Public and Development Sector Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E). Nedson previously worked as a Senior Researcher at the National Consumer Commission where he led research projects on consumer protection. He has also worked for institutions such as the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results (CLEAR-AA), the Human Sciences Research Council, and the Africa Institute of South Africa.

Research experience

In terms of his contribution to research, Nedson has published over twenty peer-reviewed publications in journals, book chapters and read papers at academic conferences. He is a co-editor of three books, namely, Lived Experiences of Borderland Communities in Zimbabwe (2023); the Evaluation Landscape in Africa: Context, methods and capacity, published by African Sun Media (2019), and Africa in a changing global environment: Perspectives of climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies in Africa, published by the Africa Institute of South Africa (2013).

Research interests:

Prof Nedson’s research interests include:

• Informal cross-border shopping and trade
• Evidence-based policy-making (EBPM)
• Suitability and climate change
• Informal economy
• Local and regional economic development
• International migration and mobility
• Made in Africa evaluation approaches and methods