African Trust Infrastructures | Post-Doctoral Fellowships

Thursday, 1 October, 2026 - 00:00

Over the last twenty years WiSER has established itself as the leading interdisciplinary research institute in the Humanities and Social Sciences on the African continent. From 2023, with generous support from Standard Bank, the Institute's newly established chair in African Trust Infrastructures calls for applications for three two-year post-doctoral fellowships to be awarded to outstanding candidates from any appropriate discipline.

The fellows will be expected to support the research into the origins and institutional effects of the digital population registration and finance systems currently under development on the African continent. Examples here could include Ethiopia’s Fayda, the GhanaCard, Rwanda’s Digital ID, Kenya’s Huduma Card, and the Nigerian National Identification Management Commission. For more on the theoretical questions at stake in this research, review this document. (Please send questions about this research to keith.breckenridge@wits.ac.za, with the subject including the phrase “ATI fellowship.”)

This is a full-time programme and is not compatible with other employment. Fellows will be expected to work closely with research staff, and to participate fully in the intellectual life of the Institute.

Fellows will receive funding for two years on the university's standard post-doctoral package.  Additional funding for research expenses and conference travel may be available. Fellows will be required to undertake up to 8 hours work a week for WiSER.

To apply, please submit the following to the Google form on this page. (The application requires that you make use of a gmail account -- if only to complete this form.)

  • Complete set of course transcripts for each degree
  • Curriculum Vitae, including the names and contact details of three academic referees.
  • A writing sample of your choice
  • A one page description of your interest in this subject.

Applications will be considered until the positions are filled.

WISER Research Theme: