On 10 September, our guest speaker An Ansoms (UCLouvain) will examine agrarian change in North Kivu, DRC, where armed conflict, environmental governance and market integration intersect. Prof. Ansoms will analyse how rural households navigate insecurity, land scarcity and competing territorial claims. Join us!

Development cooperation is not only assessed by what it delivers. It is assessed by how it is experienced and interpreted within wider narratives about power, history and global economic relations. A large study by INCLUDE with research teams across Africa examines these perceptions. 

On 23 August, poets, scholars and cultural practitioners from Kenya, Tanzania and Pemba Island gathered to honour Ustadh Mau for his contribution to Kiswahili poetry and Swahili literary heritage. Annachiara Raia, who co-led the digitisation of Mau’s archive with Mau himself, reflects on his significance to African literature.

The ASCL and the Netherlands Defence Academy are constituting parts of the Knowledge Hub Africa, which seeks to develop a research agenda on ‘African Peace and Security’. The Knowledge Hub Africa aims to highlight the agency of governmental organisations, non-state armed groups, and citizens in matters of war and peace.

The Netherlands Association of African Studies (NVAS), in partnership with IHE Delft Institute for Water Education, will organise its annual conference in Delft on 11 and 12 September, with an online day on 10 September. Join us for an exciting event with more than 45 speakers on the urgent topic of water in Africa.

Submit your Africa-related master’s thesis for the Africa Thesis Award 2026, have it published and win € 500! The Africa Thesis Award is an annual initiative by the African Studies Centre Leiden and Brill that recognises outstanding master’s theses.