Dr Udesh Pillay is the executive director of the Democracy, Governance and Service Delivery (DGSD) research programme. He holds a PhD in geography from the University of Minnesota, and an MA in geography (cum laude) from the University of Natal.
Prior to heading DGSD and the Centre for Service Delivery, Dr Pillay was executive head of the HSRC's Surveys, Analyses, Mapping and Modeling (SAMM), and Urban, Rural and Economic Development (URED), research programmes. Dr Pillay has been in executive management for over ten-years.
Before joining the HSRC, Dr Pillay was the general manager of the Delimitation and Planning Directorate of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), overseeing the 1999 national and 2000 municipal elections. Prior to that he was a senior manager at the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE). He has previously lectured at the Universities of Natal and Durban-Westville, and has consulted widely, including sustained involvement in the development of the white papers on urban development and local government in the mid-1990s
As an urban and economic geographer, Dr Pillay's key areas of expertise include urban development and renewal, local government reform and restructuring, local economic development, service delivery, urban policy and electoral geography. His PhD dissertation dealt with local economic development initiatives in South Africa, with specific reference to the case of Durban. Recent interests also include research into the impact of mega-sporting events on urban areas and livelihoods, and public opinion and attitudinal research. Dr Pillay has strong research design, methodology and quantitative analysis skills.
Dr Pillay's publications in peer-reviewed books and journals have dealt mainly with issues of urban development and social change in South Africa, urban policy, global city competitiveness, and the uniqueness of `locality'. He is the co-editor of South African Social Attitudes: Changing Times, Diverse Voices, HSRC Press, 2006, and Democracy and Delivery: Urban Policy in South Africa, HSRC Press, 2006. His latest book, Development and Dreams (looking at the urban development implications of the 2010 Soccer World Cup) is due for publication in early 2009.
Dr Pillay commentates widely on issues of urban development and policy in the print and electronic media, and is a fortnightly Business Day columnist |
