Dr Sean T. Sithole

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, Institute for Social Development (ISD), University of the Western Cape (UWC),

Contact details: seansithole263@gmail.com 

Dr Sean T. Sithole is an academic researcher and research fellow. His research work includes a Post-doctoral research fellowship at the Institute for Social Development (ISD), University of the Western Cape (UWC), researching under the MiFOOD network, supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and Canada’s New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) on the COVID-19 pandemic, migration, remittances (Remitting for Resilience – R2), food security, and climate adaptation. He recently researched the fusion of financial technology (fintech), digital remittances, and financial inclusion as a Balsillie Scholar with the Technology Governance Initiative at the Balsillie School of International Affairs (BSIA) and as an Affiliate/Fellow at the International Migration Research Centre (IMRC) in Canada. Sean has coordinated research on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), climate change, and migration, and is also involved in journal reviewing, postgraduate lecturing, and supervision. His research and collaborative work have been supported by or conducted with organisations such as Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), the Scalabrini Institute for Human Mobility in Africa (SIHMA), United Nations agencies, and the European Commission. He has served on the Executive Committee (EXCO) of the Young African Statisticians Association and was formerly the Country Coordinator for the Zimbabwe Chapter under Stats SA’s African Young Statisticians ISIbalo capacity-building programme. His research interests include digital remittances, financial technology (Fintech), mobile transfers, the synergies between international migration and urban food security, the nexus between social media and migrant networks, and the role of information and communication technology (ICT) in development. Sean holds a Doctoral (PhD) and a master’s degree in development studies from the University of the Western Cape (UWC), Digital Marketing and Social Media Marketing certificate courses from the University of Cape Town (UCT), and Special Honours and BA degrees from the University of Zimbabwe (UZ).

Relevant publications

• Sithole, S., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M.F. (2025). Digital Technologies and Food Remitting Patterns Among Zimbabwean Migrants in South Africa During COVID-19. In: Crush, J., Chikanda, A., Ramachandran, S. (eds) New Directions in South-South Migration. International Perspectives on Migration. Springer, Singapore. pp. 447–468.
• Sithole, S.T., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M. F. (2025). Feeding Hope: Zimbabwean Migrants in South Africa and the Evolving Landscape of Cross-Border Remittances. Global Food Security 44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2025.100843
• Sithole, S. (2025). Digital Payments, Cross-Border Remittances and Financial Inclusion in Southern Africa. Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), Policy Brief.
• Crush, J. & Sithole, S. (2025). Policing the pandemic: Migrants in South African cities during the COVID-19 lockdown. Rajan, S. I., Handbook of Research on Migration, COVID-19 and Cities (pp. 413–427). Edward Elgar Publishing.
• Agboola, O. D., Dinbabo, M. F., & Sithole, S. T. (2025). Sustainable Development in the Digital Age: Harnessing Technology for Global Climate Partnership in Africa. African Journal of Public Administration & Environmental Studies (AJOPAES), 4(2). https://hdl.handle.net/10520/ejc-aa_ajopaes_v4_n2_a11
• Kanyayi, J. K., Nel, C. K., Dinbabo, M. F., & Sithole, S. T. (2025). An assessment of Climate Change and Migration Governance in Africa. African Journal of Public Administration and Environmental Studies, 4(4), 281-307.
• Sithole, S.T., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M. F. (2025). Resilience and Adaptation: Struggles to Access Urban Food During the COVID-19 Pandemic by Zimbabwean, Somali and DRC Migrants in Cape Town. MiFood Research Brief No. 12, Waterloo.
• Sithole, S.T., Dinbabo, M.F., & Tevera, D. (2025). COVID-19 Pandemic Precarity and Urban Food Insecurity: Zimbabwean, Somali, and DRC Migrants in Cape Town, South Africa. MiFood Research Brief No. 16, Waterloo.
• Sithole, S., Dinbabo, M., & Tevera, D. (2024). Sustainable Development Goals and Food Remittances: COVID-19 Lockdowns, Digital Transformation, Lessons and Policy Reflections from South Africa-Zimbabwe Corridor. African Human Mobility Review, 10(3), https://doi.org/10.14426/ahmr.v10i3.2436
• Sithole, S.T., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M. F. (2024). Digital Technologies and Food Remitting by Zimbabwean Migrants in South Africa. MiFOOD Policy Brief No. 10, Waterloo.
• Sithole, S.T., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M. F. (2024). Uncovering International Migration and Remittance Patterns in Southern Africa During COVID-19: Compelling Evidence from Cape Town, South Africa. MiFood Research Brief No. 8, Waterloo.
• Crush, J. & Sithole, S. (2024). Enforcement and Exclusion: COVID-19 Policies, Urban Migrants, and Food Insecurity in Pandemic South Africa. MiFood Paper No. 23, Waterloo.
• Crush, J. & Sithole, S. (2024). South Africa At War: Food Insecurity, Migrant Exclusion and COVID-19 Policies. MiFOOD Policy Audit No. 1, Waterloo.
• Sithole, S. (2023). Migrant Networks, Food Remittances, and Zimbabweans in Cape Town: A Social Media Perspective. African Human Mobility Review (AHMR), 9(1), 33–55.
• Sithole, S., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M. F. (2023). Emerging Digital Technologies and Cross-Border Food Remittances of Zimbabwean Migrants in Cape Town, South Africa, During the Early COVID-19 Pandemic. MiFood Paper, No. 9, Waterloo.
• Sithole, S., Tevera, D., & Dinbabo, M. F. (2022). Cross-border food remittances and mobile transfers: The experiences of Zimbabwean migrants in Cape Town, South Africa. Eutopía. Revista de Desarrollo Económico Territorial, (22), 10-32.
• Sithole, S., & Dinbabo, M. (2016). Exploring youth migration and the food security nexus: Zimbabwean youths in Cape Town, South Africa. African Human Mobility Review (AHMR), 2(2), 512-537.