Divane Nzima is an alumnus of the University of Fort Hare where he obtained his PhD in Sociology in 2017. He is currently working at the University of the Free State as a Lecturer and Subject Head in the Department of Sociology at the Qwaqwa campus. His research interests cut across various disciplines such as Sociology, Demography and Development Studies. He has published research on the intersection of migration and development, family dynamics and parenting, wellbeing of the elderly in resource constrained countries as well as artisanal mining and agricultural value chains. Recently he has taken an interest in political sociology after realizing a need for more young people to participate in political debates in Africa. His main interest is in the nature and methods of political contestations to wield political power in environments that are always in election mode.

Publications in peer-reviewed/refereed journals

1. Masinga, F. N., Maharaj, P., & Nzima, D. (2021). Adapting to changing climatic conditions: perspectives and experiences of women in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Development in Practice, 31(8), 1002-1013.

2. Macheka, M. T., Maharaj, P., & Nzima, D. (2020). Choosing between environmental conservation and survival: Exploring the link between livelihoods and the natural environment in rural Zimbabwe. South African Geographical Journal

3. Steinert, J. I., Cluver, L. D., Meinck, F., Nzima, D., & Doubt, J. (2020). Opening the Black Box: A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Social and Psychological Mechanisms Underlying Changes in Financial Behaviour. The Journal of Development Studies, 1-22.

4. Blessing Ngcobo, N., Maharaj, P., & Nzima, D. (2018). Men’s motivation for contraceptive use in Inanda township, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Culture, health & sexuality, 1-11.

5. Cluver, L. D., Meinck, F., Steinert, J. I., Shenderovich, Y., Doubt, J., Romero, R. H., ... & Nzima, D. (2018). Parenting for lifelong health: A pragmatic cluster randomised controlled trial of a non-commercialised parenting programme for adolescents and their families in South Africa. BMJ Global Health, 3(1), e000539.

6. Dube, N., Nkala, P., Nzima, D., Fhulu, N., 2018. Financing in Agricultural Value Chains in Zimbabwe Experiences of Rural Smallholder Farmers in the Districts of Binga and Hwange. Int. J. Interdiscip. Environ. Stud. 13, 18–33.

7. Nzima, D., & Moyo, P. (2017). The new ‘diaspora trap’ framework: Explaining return migration from South Africa to Zimbabwe beyond the ‘failure-success’ framework. Migration letters, 14 (3), 343-354

8. Nzima, D., Duma, V., & Moyo, P. (2017). Migration and local development: The multiplier effect of migrant remittances in Tsholotsho, Zimbabwe. Migracijske i etnicke teme 8(20),69-76.

9. Doubt, J., Bray, R., Loening-Voysey, H., Cluver, L., Byrne, J., Nzima, D., ... & Medley, S. (2017). ‘It Has Changed’: Understanding Change in a Parenting Programme in South Africa. Annals of Global Health.

10. Nzima, D. (2017). Channelling migrant remittances from South Africa to Zimbabwe: Opportunities and obstacles. Alternation, 24 (1)

11. Nzima, D., Duma, V., Moyo, P., & Hlatywayo C,K. (2017). Local development and migrant remittances: Education, skills and capabilities as preconditions for investment in Tsholotsho, Zimbabwe. Journal of Sociology and Anthropology.

12. Nzima, D., Duma, V., & Moyo, P. (2016). Migrant Remittances, Livelihoods and Investment: Evidence from Tsholotsho District in the Matabeleland North Province of Zimbabwe. Migracijske i etnicke teme, (1), 37-62.

13. Nzima, D., Duma, V., & Moyo, P. (2016). Theorizing migration-development interactions: towards an integrated approach. Migration and Development, 1-14.

Books and/or chapters in books

1. Nzima, D., & Maharaj, P. (2020). “Growing old is not fun”: Experiences of ageing in rural Zimbabwe. In Health and Care in Old Age in Africa (pp. 109-126). Routledge.

2. Nzima, D., & Maharaj, P. (2020). Long-term care for the elderly in sub-Saharan Africa: An analysis of existing models. In Health and Care in Old Age in Africa (pp. 41-60). Routledge.

3. Dube, N., Sithole, M., Maviza., ….& Nzima, D. (2018). Environmentally sustainable artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) for sustainable livelihoods: A formalisation manual for Southern Africa. Ali Douglas Research Network. Bulawayo. 4. Dube, N., Sithole, M., Maviza.,& Nzima, D. (2018). Environmentally sustainable artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) for sustainable livelihoods: A training manual for Southern Africa. Ali Douglas Research Network. Bulawayo

Technical/policy reports

1. Dube, N., Sithole, M., Nzima, D., Maviza, G. (2020). Next Generation Zimbabwe. A study commissioned by British Council.

2. Loening-Voysey, H., Doubt, J., Nzima, D., Shenderovich, Y., Steinert, J., Byrne, J., & Cluver, L. (2018). Relevance, Implementation and Impact of the Sinovuyo Teen Parenting Programme in South Africa (UNICEF Working Paper, No. inorer993).

3. Doubt, J., Loening-Voysey, H., Cluver, L., Byrne, J., Shenderovich, Y., Nzima, D., ... & O`Malley, O. (2018). “It empowers to attend.” Understanding how participants in the Eastern Cape of South Africa experienced a parent support programme: A qualitative study (UNICEF Working Paper, No. inwopa999).

Presently, Dr. Nzima is in a robust drive to collect and engage with works written by African scholars. He has the view that in our higher education there was a serious lack of material written by African social theorists such as Ben Magubane and Archie Mafeje to mention just a few. As calls for decolonizing the academy intensify, he is doing his best to be prepared for these debates as well as the implementation of the decolonial agenda in higher education. While aligning himself to the decolonial scholarly networks, he also remains very resolute in keeping himself updated with scholarly debates in his primary field of sociology globally. This entails engaging contemporary interpretations of classical works, postmodernist theories as well as feminist and gender discourses through a decolonial lens in research and teaching.