Dr Mvuzo Ponono is a research specialist in the HSRC’s Equitable Education and Economies division. He holds a PhD in Media Studies from Rhodes University (2018). Dr Ponono specialises in audience, postcolonial studies and small business development. His passions include inclusive economic development and the development of township, rural and informal sector economies.

Both his MA and PhD examined development and agency within a township setting. His subsequent postdoc at the University of Free State’s Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences explored township economies and the informal sector. Before embarking on his graduate studies, Dr Ponono spent his formative years working as a high school teacher, journalist and university lecturer.