Simbarashe Gukurume is a Social Scientist with training in, and working at the intersections of Sociology and Social Anthropology. Simbarashe is a senior lecturer at Sol Plaatje University, Kimberly, South Africa. Prior to joining Sol Plaatje University, Simbarashe was a lecturer and faculty research chairperson at Great Zimbabwe University. Simbarashe holds a PhD from the University of Cape Town, South Africa. His Masters in Sociology and Social Anthropology as well as BSc in Sociology were obtained from the University of Zimbabwe.

Simbarashe’s research interests focuses more broadly on sociology of youth, informality and informal economies, livelihoods, displacements, ethnography of money, politics and social movements and Pentecostalism. Simbarashe has been a recipient of several research and fellowship awards such as the Harry Frank Guggenheim Young African Scholars award, New York, the Matasa Network fellowship award, IDS, University of Sussex, Emerging Young African Scholars Fellowship.

Following involvement in the Matasa Fellows Network, Simbarashe has been involved with two further research projects at IDS: ‘Vending on the streets. Youth and vending in Zimbabwe‘ and ‘Youth employment and political representation in Africa, case studies in Uganda, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia and Mozambique‘; contributed to a relating book chapter; and is working on another project with another of the Matasa Fellows, Tarila Ebiede.