The Palgrave Handbook of African Men and Masculinities

“The Palgrave Handbook of African Men and Masculinities remains a scholarly milestone as it reorients masculinity studies in Africa toward local knowledge, lived realities, and political urgency. The volume is undoubtedly a must-read and vital resource for scholars, activists, and policymakers engaged in African studies, gender studies, sociology, and postcolonial theory. ... the handbook is as much an academic material as it is indeed an activistic manifesto.” (Omotayo Jemiluyi, NORMA - International Journal for Masculinity Studies, March 31, 2026)

Ezra Chitando  is Professor of History and Phenomenology of Religion at the University of Zimbabwe and has published widely on religion, gender, masculinities, and sexualities. He is co-editor/co-author of over 50 books including  Christianity and Controversies Over Homosexuality in Africa ;  Public Religion and The Politics of Homosexuality in Africa ; and  Redemptive Masculinities: Men, HIV and Religion . Chitando has completed research fellowships in Germany, Sweden, Scotland, and the US.

Obert Bernard Mlambo  is Associate Professor in the Department of Religious Studies, Classics and Philosophy at the University of Zimbabwe, and is currently a Visiting Scholar at the Global South Studies Centre in the University of Cologne, Germany. He is also a former recipient of the Fondation Hardt´s Doctoral Researchers Fellowship (Geneva, Switzerland, 2013) and the Nordic Africa Institute’s Guest Scholar Fellowship (Uppsala, Sweden, 2016). Mlambo has taken up Visiting Research Fellowships and Professorships in the UK, Germany, South Africa and has presented conference papers in many other countries.

Sakhumzi Mfecane  is Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Western Cape, South Africa who has published widely on African masculinities, men’s health and medical anthropology. His research has appeared in a number of international, peer-reviewed journals including  South African Review of Sociology,   Social Dynamics ,  International Journal of Men’s Health, Culture, Health and Sexuality,   Anthropology Southern Africa , and  African Journal of AIDS Research .

Kopano Ratele  is Professor of Psychology at Stellenbosch University, South Africa and a nationally and internationally acclaimed scholar in masculinity studies and decolonial Africa(n)-centring thought. His published works include  From Boys to Men: Social Constructions of Masculinity in Contemporary Society  (2008),  There Was This Goat: Investigating the Truth Commission Testimony of Notrose Nobomvu Konile (2009), Liberating Masculinities  (2016), Engaging Youth in Activism, Research and Pedagogical Praxis: Transnational and Intersectional Perspectives on Gender, Sex, and Race  (2018), The World Looks Like This From Here: Thoughts on African Psychology (2019), and Why Men Hurt Women and Other Reflections on Love, Violence and Masculinity (2022).