Siviwe Mhlana spoke as an invited panelist at the annual Rethinking Economics for Africa (REFA) Festival on Friday 2 October. Siviwe is a scholar-activist and received her masters degree from Rhodes University’s Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) after being awarded a full NALSU bursary. The festival was held online for the first time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Siviwe presented alongside international scholars at a panel focussing on labour and work in economics. Siviwe’s research explores the changing nature of labour-intensive production in post-Apartheid South Africa and the gendered individualisation of risk associated with non-standard, informal and precarious employment. Her research interests include international development, labour economics, social policy and gender.