Nigel Mxolisi Landa is a Lecturer at the Great Zimbabwe University and a Research Associate at the University of Johannesburg, South Africa. He holds a BSc (Hons) Degree in Sociology (University of Zimbabwe), a MSc Degree in Sociology and Social Anthropology (University of Zimbabwe), and a PhD in Sociology (University of Johannesburg, South Africa). His research gaze focuses on the politics of immigration, including the agency, vulnerabilities, and oppression of those identified as outsiders, and questions of sex, gender, and nation-building in Africa.
Next Gen: Briefly describe the central argument of your doctoral dissertation. What is its main contribution to knowledge in your field?
My thesis, titled “Gender, Power, and Space-Making in the City of Johannesburg: Understanding the Lives of Zimbabwean Women,” is situated within debates about identity, gender, and transmigration that are burgeoning in the South-to-South context. Using a feminist research approach, the thesis focuses on the experiences of working-class Zimbabwean women living in Johannesburg with precarious immigration legal status. It argues that these women navigate the city in ways that reveal spatial injustices that black South Africans are already experiencing. These include grappling with the legacies of colonial border regimes and social exclusion in labor/work, accommodation, access to public health institutions, cost of living crisis, remittances, experiences with GBV, and structural violence such as xenophobia and being arrested, detained, and deported. The impact of ‘irregular personhood’ that is inscribed in the women’s identities means that they experience violent ‘bordered femininity’ at all stages of the migration process.
Contrary to binary conceptions of gender and the everyday lives of immigrant women, the thesis reveals a nuanced reality of how they carve space for themselves despite the challenges they encounter, demonstrating the potency of human agency. It moves our understanding of femininity and gendered space beyond the dichotomies of victors, victims, and survivors, which dehumanizes them and strips away their dignity. Crucially, it holds up a mirror to the government
of Zimbabwe to examine itself and to do more for its citizens, who are forced to migrate out of the myriad of political, social, and economic challenges they find themselves in, and the South African government, which is obliged to protect the rights of people on the move.
How did the Next Gen fellowship program impact your doctoral journey?
The Next Gen fellowship program impacted my doctoral journey in two ways. First, the research methods workshop introduced me to fellows who are doing interesting research across Africa. This allowed me to share my experiences with other like-minded researchers. Mentors provided invaluable advice, which went a long way towards shaping the thesis and the trajectory of my doctoral research.
Secondly, the funding enabled me to take some time off work without having to worry about sourcing extra income while I wrote the thesis.
Now that you have completed your PhD, what are your plans for the future?
Now that I have completed my PhD, I have my eyes set on contributing to existing knowledge through the publication of academic and policy papers. I also seek to apply for various Post-Doctoral research fellowships that would enable me to convert parts of the dissertation into journal articles and book chapters.
What advice do you have for upcoming doctoral students?
Upcoming doctoral students should start early. It is important they hit the ground running, especially with respect to the development of theoretical and findings chapters.
A list of Nigel Mxolisi Landa’s published works.
Landa, N. M. (2024). Masculinities at a Dumpsite: A Case of Victoria Ranch, Masvingo Zimbabwe. Book Chapter in Baikady, R, Sajid, S. M, Przeperski, J, Varoshini, N. M, Rezaul, I and Gao, J (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Problems. Palgrave McMillan Publishing, 110- 137
Bvirindi, T. R. Landa, N. M. and Chidarikire, S. (2024). Transitional Justice and Human Rights in Zimbabwe’s Gukurahundi Mass Grave Exhumations, African Conflict & Peacebuilding Review, 14(1), 123- 143
Sibanda, M., Landa, N. M. and Takayindisa, F. M. (2023). Devolving and Decentralising COVID-19 Response in Zimbabwe: Mirroring the Practices and Challenges of the COVID Taskforce in Guaranteeing the Right to Health. Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law 40- 55
