Ubuntu Research Group (URG)

Vincent Mabvurira is a Social Work academic who holds Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Social Work degrees from the University of Zimbabwe. He is also a holder of a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Social Work from University of Limpopo, South Africa. His teaching career began in 2010 when he joined Bindura University of Science Education as a Teaching Assistant in the Department of Social Work. He has also taught at Women’s University in Africa and the University of Zimbabwe. He is currently serving as an Associate Professor in the School of Psycho-social Health at North-West University, South Africa. His research focuses on indigenous knowledge systems, religiosity and spirituality in social work and child welfare.

Ubuntu Project: See program of work at the end

Dr. Thembelihle Brenda Makhanya (PhD) is a lecturer at the University of KwaZulu Natal, School of Applied Human Science, Department of Social Work. She serve as a discipline representative in Teaching and Learning. She was also appointed as a language champion for the school of Applied Human Scince. Her research interest includes teaching and learning; (de) coloniality; Social Work education; Languages; Gender and Fatherhood. She has produced 7 peer reviewed journals that are publiched in accredited journals and 4 book chapters. Dr Makhanya Presented papers in International, National and regional conferences. Recently attended and presented a paper in the international conference held at Maasai Mara University, Narok, Kenya on May 25-27, 2022. She offers her professional services to the Department of Correctional Services, in the restorative Justice Programme as a facilitator and a coordinator for Victim Offender Mediation Diologue (VOM-D). She is a founder and a chairperson of Imbewu Youth Empowerment Centre, an NGO offering pyschosocial needs to young peope in the Ugu District. She received Working Groups Programme research funding from the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (NIHSS) for year 2021/2022. She was nominated and profiled as the insipiring women of UKZN college of Humanitoes during womens Month in August 2022. She also received an award from the Association of South African Social Work Education Institutions (ASASWEI) as Emerging Social Work Educator of the Year for 2021. Dr Makhanyawas also listed among 13 young academics on sport light at UKZN in 2021. She also won a first price award for the best paper at the 2019 NIHSS Annual National Doctoroal conference and won a best paper award at the NIHSS 2021 Alumni conference. 

Dr Rugare Mugumbate holds a Bachelor of Social Work and a Master of Social Work from the University of Zimbabwe and a PhD in Social Work from the University of Newcastle, Australia. He worked in the disability sector before joining the Department of Social Work, Bindura University of Science Education, Zimbabwe. Presently, he is with the School of Health & Society, University of Wollongong, Australia where he teaches international social work and other subjects. He works with the Africa Social Work Network (ASWNet) which promotes production and dissemination of indigenous knowledges such as ubuntu and the African Journal of Social Work (AJSW) published by the National Association of Social Workers (Zimbabwe). He is a founder of Sanga Development Foundation (SDF), a community-based organisation in his home village in Buhera District; Epilepsy Resource Centre of Zimbabwe based in Harare and the Epilepsy Africa Alliance (EAA) based in Kigali, Rwanda. He participates in global disability advocacy and research. His research interests are in social justice as it interfaces with marginalised groups in society.

Mayaka is a passionate inclusive social worker with experience in child protection, youth work, medical social work, and participatory practice. He is a professional development advocate for indigenous and international social work, writing on Ubuntu social work. His interests include children and family, migration studies, resiliency, international relations, and inclusive social development with an Afrocentric lens on sustainable wellbeing.

Currently he works as a member of the IFSW Secretariate and an International Social work lecturer at the HAN University.

Qualifications: Diploma in Social Development and Administration (Social Work); B.Sc. (Sociology); Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) [Social Policy] and Ph.D. (Sociology with a bias in social work)

Chinwe R. Nwanna (Ph.D.) is a Professor and the current Head of the Department of Social Work, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lagos. She has numerous research studies and publications in reputable peer-reviewed national and international journals and books in Social Work, Population Studies including HIV/AIDS, Women Studies including Gender-based Violence, Urbanization and Migration. Having attended many national and international capacity building programmes and chaired numerous Faculty and Departmental Committees, Prof. C. R. Nwanna has amassed a wealth of experience in teaching, researching and administration. She served as the Coordinator of B. Sc. Social Work Programme from 2007 to 2014 when it metamorphosed to a Unit and then continued till 2018 when it became a full-fledged Department. She participated in the review of Social Development Curricula for National Diploma (ND)/Higher National Diploma (HND) in Nigeria, 2015; finalization of Social Welfare Policy in Nigeria, 2017; harmonization of B. Sc. Social Work Curricula in Nigerian universities, 2017; review and development of National Universities Commission Benchmark Minimum Academic Standards (NUC BMAS) for undergraduate and postgraduate Social Work programmes respectively, 2017. She is a recipient of several grants and awards for academic and research excellence and for attending international conferences. She is affiliated to various professional associations such as Nigeria Association of Social Workers (NASOW) Lagos Chapter, Nigeria Association of Social Work Educators (NASWE now ASWEN), International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW), Association of Schools of Social Work in Africa (ASSWA), International Union for Scientific Studies of Population (IUSSP), France, Union for African Population Studies, (UAPS), Accra, Ghana to mention but a few.