This roundtable is part of the Europe Talks programme of public dialogue and cultural exchange launched this year by the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) in partnership with the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of South Africa. The initiative provides platforms for engagement and dialogue with South Africa’s youth about contemporary topics or global challenges.

Inequality poses one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century globally, and within Africa. 
 

The undermining consequences of inequality for global and country-level cohesion and development were known at the start of this century. Since then, the levels and textures of inequalities have become more problematic. 

But they have not been directly confronted; even as these unfolding dynamics have greatly amplified the need to do so as a cornerstone for building a mutually beneficial and inclusive development agenda.

The promise of democracy lies in giving voice to all citizens. But can we truly be equal under the law when inequalities are so great that they prevent many citizens from fully enjoying their rights whilst enabling some people to become increasingly more powerful? We risk finding ourselves in a Pascalian situation where “being unable to make what is just strong, we have made what is strong just”.

Inequality leaves many across the continent without voice and leads to policies and actions that stifle opportunities and abilities to seize these opportunities. At times, lives are severely disrupted and lost. In Southern Africa, as in large parts of the world, inequalities have been rising – and with these consequences. It is pressing that we turn this tide. What must be done?

The roundtable will facilitate a dynamic discussion on this issue, focusing on the interrelatedness of inequality, migration and social mobility in Africa – a much-debated topic in light of the latest conflicts between South Africans and foreign nationals seeking a way out of poverty and into social mobility. The discussions will also link European and Southern African perspectives on inequality, democracy, and social and physical mobility.

About the speakers

Murray Leibbrandt holds the UCT Research Chair in Poverty and Inequality Research in the Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit (SALDRU) at the University of Cape Town. He served as Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Poverty and Inequality at UCT and was Director of SALDRU from 2002 until July 2023. Currently, he co-directs ACEIR, is a Visiting Professor at Yale University, and a Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at UNU-WIDER. He also serves on the Council of the Academy of Science of South Africa. Prof. Leibbrandt held the DSI/NRF National Research Chair for Poverty and Inequality Research from 2008 to 2022 and was a member of the Executive Committee of the International Economic Association from 2017 to 2023. He served as President of the African Econometric Society (2006–2007) and the Economic Society of South Africa (2007–2010).

Patricia Justino is a development economist who works at the interface between Development Economics and Political Science. She is a leading expert on political violence and development, and the co-founder and co-director of the Households in Conflict Network. She is currently Director at UNU-WIDER and Professorial Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies in Brighton, UK (on leave). Professor Justino’s research focuses on the relationship between political violence, institutional transformation, governance and development outcomes. She has led major research programmes funded by the European Commission, the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the UK Department for International Development (DFID). She is currently the director of an ESRC large grant project on the relationship between inequality, social trust and governance outcomes.

Anda David is a development economist based at the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) where she is currently responsible for scientific coordination of the EU-AFD Research Facility on Inequalities. Based in Mexico after four years in South Africa, she is also an affiliated researcher at SALDRU. Her current research projects focus on the impact of emigration on countries of origin (labour market, women’s labour), inequalities, social cohesion and aid effectiveness. She also analyses inequalities and migration patterns and coordinates the scientific aspects of the EU-AFD Research Facility on Inequalities. Dr David also regularly collaborated with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, the International Labor Organization, and the World Bank.