ASC Newsletter June / July 2015

Inaugural address Rijk van Dijk at the UvA

On the occasion of his appointment as a Professor of Religion and Sexuality in Africa, ASC researcher Rijk van Dijk will give his inaugural address 'Faith in Romance. Toward an Anthropology of Romantic Relationships, Sexuality and Responsibility in African Christianities' at the University of Amsterdam on 24 June.

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Just out! ASC Annual Report 2014

The Annual Report for 2014 is out now! In addition to an excellent list of publications by our researchers, you will find other highlights such as the Africa Works! conference in October and the ASC Annual Event by Phillippa Yaa de Villiers in December. 

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Deadline Africa Thesis Award: 12 July

Final-year students who have completed their Masters thesis with distinction at a university in Africa or the Netherlands may apply for the Africa Thesis Award. The ASC offers you the chance to win € 500. The winning thesis will be published in the African Studies Collection. Submit your thesis no later than 12 July!

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Research at a glance: Anouk Baron

Anouk Baron has recently started her PhD within the framework of the new research project Society and Change in Northern Ghana: Dagomba, Gonja, and the Regional Perspective on Ghanaian History. The subject of her research: the impact of the increasing commercialisation of shea on gendered power relations. For the ASC Newsletter, Anouk shares the outlines of her research!

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European Conference on African Studies, Paris 8-10 July

The sixth European Conference on African Studies (ECAS) will take place 8-10 July at the Sorbonne in Paris. The principal theme is Collective Mobilisations in Africa: Contestation, Resistance, Revolt. Many ASC researchers will host a panel. Have a look at the programme!

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News from INCLUDE

INCLUDE and the African Economic Research Consortium organized the working conference 'Building Policy-Knowledge Communities for Inclusive Development in Africa' in Nairobi 11-12 May. The conference explored how INCLUDE can cooperate with African organizations and think tanks in knowledge sharing and uptake around the research projects supported by the platform. Questions of female entrepreneurship and fresh produce value chains were discussed.

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ASC Infosheet: Defining, targeting and reaching the very poor in Bangladesh, Benin and Ethiopia

Anika Altaf and Ton Dietz wrote a new ASC Infosheet about how NGOs can reach the very poor in Bangladesh, Benin and Ethiopia. Four case studies show that if NGOs want to include the ultra-poor in economic programmes, they need to emphasize social protection and human rights approaches that go beyond those programmes.

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Securing wilderness landscapes in South Africa: Nick Steele, private wildlife conservancies and saving rhinos

Private wildlife conservation is booming business in South Africa. Nick Steele stood at the cradle of this development in the politically turbulent 1970s and 1980s. Harry Wels (ASC/VU) had access to Nick Steele's private diaries and paints a personal picture of a controversial conservationist in this ASC book published by Brill.

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Ethiopia's stalemate "election" hinders generational change

Jan Abbink wrote a web article for IPI Global Observatory about the questionable Ethiopian electoral process and how it threatens to thwart the new generation's potential. Elections took place on 24 May.

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Acquisition Highlight: African Crime Fiction

In recognition of the Month of the Exciting Book, the ASC Library purchased a new set of African crime novels covering contemporary African crime writers from across the continent. Among them are Blood Rose by Margie Orford and Zulu by Caryl Férey.

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European Librarians in African Studies: Annual Meeting 7 July in Paris

This year's meeting of ELIAS (European Librarians in African Studies) will take place on 7 July in Paris. Theme of the meeting is 'Special Collections'. Among the keynote speakers is Jean-Pierre Bat of the French National Archives. He will talk about collections and projects on Africa at the National Archives.

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Lecture Heleen Smits at the University of Khartoum

Information Specialist Heleen Smits (ASC Library) gave a lecture at the Faculty of Arts, University of Khartoum (Sudan). The subject was in line with the research she conducts on the grammar of the Lumun language, which is her PhD subject at Leiden University. She also purchased some 25 books at the Khartoum university's bookshop for the ASC Library.

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ISNI in AfricaBib

ISNI, the International Standard Name Identifier, is the global standard number for identifying contributors to creative works, including researchers, writers and publishers. In the AfricaBib database, hosted by the ASC, more than 40,000 ISNI numbers have been assigned. Clicking on the ISNI image performs a search on this person within the entire AfricaBib database.

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Akinyinka Akinyoade interviewed in NRC about demographic developments in Africa

Akinyinka Akinyoade was interviewed in NRC Handelsblad about the reasons why the demographic transition to a lower birth rate is going slower in Sub-Saharan Africa than elsewhere.

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Letter Stephen Ellis in NRC about being misquoted in Martin Bosma's book

Stephen Ellis wrote a letter in NRC Handelsblad about being incorrectly used as a source in Martin Bosma's book Minderheid in eigen land: Hoe progressieve strijd ontaardt in genocide en ANC-apartheid.

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Marleen Dekker in Trouw about the phasing out of the Zimbabwean dollar

ASC researcher Marleen Dekker was interviewed in Trouw about the phasing out of the Zimbabwean dollar. Zimbabweans can exchange bank accounts of up to 175 quadrillion (175,000,000,000,000,000) Zimbabwean dollars for 5 US dollars. 

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Seminar: Africa Europe Migration: Lampedusa caught between shipwreck and tourism

In 2013, one of Lampedusa's beaches was rated the most beautiful in the world. It is also the place where more than 500 Eritreans drowned. The island's link to migration from Africa reflects African and European political decisions; media consistently link the island with tragedy. Local people launch new tourism ventures. During the ASC seminar on 2 July, Anna Arnone (SOAS, London) will talk about the encounter of these types of movement.

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CTD Seminar: Les violences ordinaires dans l’Afrique contemporaine: le monde humanitaire

This seminar on 3 July is held in the Connecting in Times of Duress series. Please note it will be held in French! The subject is ordinary violence in Africa with regards to humanitarian aid. Guest speakers are Sylvie Ayimpam & Jacky Bouju, both of Aix-Marseille Université and Institut des mondes Africains (IMAF).

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ASC congratulates Prof. Dzodzi Tsikata as new president of CODESRIA

The ASC congratulates Prof. Dzodzi Tsikata as the newly elected president of CODESRIA (Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa). Prof. Tsikata holds a PhD in Social Science from Leiden University and was visiting fellow at the ASC in 2002.

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Didier Lalaye alias Croquemort at the Institute of History, Leiden University

Didier Lalaye Fonong-Ta (1984), alias Croquemort, will be visiting the Institute of History from 3 June to 1 September. Didier is related to the research project Connecting in Times of Duress coordinated by ASC researcher Mirjam de Bruijn. His writing and music are commentaries on the main themes of this research programme. Didier will present his experiences in research and art on several occasions in the coming months.

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Third International Conference on Financing for Development 13-16 July

The (UN) Third International Conference on Financing for Development in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, will gather Heads of State and Government, Ministers of Finance, Foreign Affairs and Development Cooperation, as well as all other relevant stakeholders. Ultimate aim is to contribute to the implementation of the post-2015 development agenda.

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