South African Research Chairs Initiative (SARChI)
Research Chair in the Political Economy of Migration in the SADC Region
The Research Chair in the Political Economy of Migration in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region (PEMS) bridges knowledge and capacity gaps in the complex and multi-dimensional realities of migration. It conducts research, teaching and training of post-graduate students at Masters, PhD and Post-Doctoral levels. PEMS also engages (senior) executives and staff on various aspects of migration in governments, regional economic communities, international organisations, and civil society, tertiary institutions, science councils and think tanks (national, cross-border and regional) in the SADC and other regions.
PEMS mobilises multi-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary expertise to explore the dynamics, complexities and opportunities for regional integration in the SADC sub-regional sphere, through the lens of migration as a focal area. It examines the sociological, political, economic and policy dimensions of migration, exploring how transboundary mobility and living affect livelihoods, identity formation and notions of belonging, citizenship and being. It examines the implications these migration characteristics on the ideas of region-ness and access to justice and public goods, particularly in the vast, diverse and complex geopolitics of the SADC region.
The general research outlook of PEMS
The ambit of PEMS is broad and open to ongoing social, economic, cultural and political change in a dynamic post-colonial, post-apartheid society and Southern African region.
The primary goal of PEMS is to provide leadership, guidance and support for research and knowledge transfer activities clustered around the following interrelated core goals:
Scientific accomplishments that focus on research and explore the complexities and dynamics of migration and the impact thereof on big social questions.
Research Training for talented researchers and the development of areas of work and bodies of knowledge.
Knowledge transfer, which is central to disseminating knowledge for solving problems through communication with relevant stakeholders, networking with other research centres in Africa and globally, and increasing research partnerships and applications of findings in private and public sectors by strengthening collaborations with key stakeholders.
Innovation as a key element to the research and knowledge domain and the application of better solutions that support scientific entrepreneurship and take advantage of trans-disciplinarity in emerging research opportunities to drive innovation.
