The African Studies Centre Leiden is the only multidisciplinary knowledge institute in the Netherlands devoted entirely to the study of Africa. It has a research library that is open to the general public. The ASCL is an interfaculty institute of Leiden University.
This year a total of twenty seven high-quality Master’s theses were submitted to the Africa Thesis Award. The submitted theses were all based on independent research related to Africa and represented a diverse range of disciplinary fields. The Africa Thesis Award committee is glad to announce that this year’s winner is Tamia Botes (University of Witwatersrand, South Africa) for her thesis 'Where have the midwives gone? Everyday histories of Voetvroue in Johannesburg'.
The Stephen Ellis Annual Research Lecture will be given on 9 December by Dr Nanjala Nyabola, independent writer and researcher based in Nairobi, Kenya. Examining key moments in African women’s history, Dr Nyabola will outline key characteristics of African women’s political organisation, mobilisation and action. She will also offer a possible theoretical framework for African women’s work and African feminisms as political science method. Please register for this online lecture.
Black Minds Matter tells the story of one of the most outspoken clerics of Africa, Emmanuel Milingo, who was Archbishop of Lusaka from 1969 to 1983. Milingo became widely known for his healing ministry, which was rooted in African spiritual ideas. This brought him into years of conflict with the dominant powers in the Catholic Church, and eventually led to his excommunication in 2006. Black Minds Matter was written by Gerrie ter Haar, emeritus Professor of Religion and Development at the International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University Rotterdam.
On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Tanzanian publishing house Mkuki na Nyota, a student of the Minor African Dynamics interviewed the publisher, Walter Bgoya, a key personality in African publishing. Mr Bgoya is outspoken about the importance of printed books for education, and about the language of instruction: 'To believe that English, French and Portuguese are the languages through which knowledge will be transmitted to the majority of our people is a colonial hangover.' Read the interview in the Minor African Dynamics Students' Blog!
The Annual Report for 2020 is out now! In addition to an excellent list of publications by our researchers, you will find other highlights such as the (pre-COVID-19) conference 'Africa: 60 years of independence', the honorary doctorate awarded to Prof. Lungisile Ntsebeza (UCT), and the prolific three-month online conference Africa Knows!
