Prof Murray Leibbrandt

Prof. 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 directs the African Centre of Excellence for Inequality Research under the African Universities Alliance. He 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).  

As a founding principal investigator of South Africa’s National Income Dynamics Study (2007–2019), he has played a key role in shaping economic research in the region. He is also a principal investigator of Health and Aging in Africa: Longitudinal Studies in South Africa. His research focuses on the use of survey data, particularly longitudinal studies, to explore poverty, inequality, and labour market dynamics in South Africa and across Africa. 

Prof. Leibbrandt has advised on key national policies, including labour market legislation, as part of President Mandela’s Labour Market Commission (1995–1996). He also served on the National Minimum Wage Panel for Deputy President Ramaphosa (2016–2017). In 2021, he was part of the Expert Group advising on Basic Income Support and served on the Ministerial Task Team reviewing student funding for the Department of Higher Education and Training in 2021/22.