The Centre for Social Sciences Research (CSSR) and the  Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa  (IDCPPA) at the University of Cape Town invite you to join us for a lunchtime seminar on 20 October at 12:45pm. The seminar will be presented by Dr. Jill Samukimba.

About the Seminar:

What Sustains Father Involvement? Moving Beyond Provision to Understand Long-Term          Involvement of Non-Resident Fathers in South Africa

This qualitative longitudinal study explores what it takes for non-resident isiXhosa unmarried fathers to be involved and sustain their active involvement in their children’s lives over a five-year period. To date, few studies in the region have focused on the temporal aspects of fathering and how fathering involvement shifts over time.

The thesis presents insight into a longer-term understanding of the fathering experience. By drawing on in-depth interviews with a sample of non-resident fathers, the study maps out how fathering and caregiving are maintained despite the changing socio-economic and relational dynamics.

The thesis argues that there are three major elements that non-resident fathers depend on to be involved and sustain their active involvement in their children’s lives. Non-resident fathers depend on i) resources in the form of money, space, and time, ii) harmonious relationships with social actors involved in gatekeeping their involvement, including biological mothers and grandmothers, and iii) a set of beliefs that understand fathering as more than economic provision.

The study argues that neither relational aspects, material resources, nor ideological beliefs alone can sustain father involvement. Through deep engagement with the fathers over time, the thesis demonstrates that it is an enduring commitment to all three aspects that sustains father involvement over time

  20 October 2026
  12:45 - 14:00 SAST
  CSSR Seminar Room, 4.29, Robert Leslie Social Sciences Building, UCT

Hosted by the Centre for Social Science Research and the Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa