About the Centre

The Southern Centre for Inequality Studies (SCIS) is the first research institute of its kind in the global South. It draws on the intellectual resources of Wits University, and partner institutions in South Africa and beyond, to host a truly interdisciplinary research and policy project focusing on understanding and addressing inequality in the global South. Although there are a number of centres for the study of inequality worldwide, they are almost exclusively in the global north, and in the United Kingdom, and United States in particular. We believe that there are distinct drivers and characteristics of inequality in the South.

The Southern Centre for Inequality Studies is a truly interdisciplinary and intersectional research and policy institute located in the global south. Interdisciplinarity has been built into the Centre from the beginning, with thematic and policy focus areas that transcend traditional academic boundaries. This SCIS will ensure that the project objectives and the work undertaken by the various research initiatives and activities will result in a substantive outcome: an evidence based progressive policy programme to overcome inequality in South Africa, and advance our understanding of inequality in the global South.