To individuals and organisations with an interest in Africa’s transformation towards a prosperous continent where no-one is left behind by poverty, deprivation, and the underlying inequalities that drive these, Murray Leibbrandt would be a familiar name. His research career has spanned decades of exceptional dedication to using his scholarly expertise to support government decisionmakers making sense of the intricacies and complexities of poverty and inequality.
“We academics in South Africa have the wonderful privilege of working very closely to the policy community – far closer than what very famous professors do in other countries”, Prof. Leibbrandt told the graduation ceremony as he accepted an honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Economic and Management Sciences from the University of the Free State.
“We are called to be an engaged and contributing part of our country and that’s an extraordinary privilege; especially for me, who somehow from my earliest days have found a wonderful meshing of my academic work with what I wanted to do with my life. So, I’m deeply grateful.”
Prof. Leibbrandt, who is UCT’s Research Chair in Poverty and Inequality Research, is the director of ACEIR, one of the centres of excellence of the African Research Universities Alliance, and the co-lead of the newly established Africa-Europe Cluster of Research Excellence in Inequalities, Poverty, and Deprivation. He was the Director of SALDRU until 2023. As UCT’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Poverty and Inequality, he was instrumental in steering the university’s Poverty and Inequality Initiative, and the Mandela Initiative.
We roll up our sleeves and we do our work for a better country
In his acceptance speech, Prof. Leibbrandt paid homage to the collective effort of scholars who aim to make a difference through their work.
“It’s an extraordinary privilege to be honoured in this way. I’ve worked right alongside colleagues in SALDRU, elsewhere at UCT and also nationally and internationally to make our contribution in this country, and across our continent. So, it’s a little awkward being singled out for an award for something that’s very much a collective process over many years.”
“We roll up our sleeves and we do our work, trying to build a better country through our research and through our advice, based on careful research. It’s a privilege to be honoured for something that’s very much a collective achievement.”