News

/ Research

Call: 8th Annual Africa Conference (April 9 -10, 2020 | Tennessee)

Tennessee State University

"Towards the African Renaissance: Opportunities, Challenges, and Prospects"

The idea of African Renaissance is a recurrent concept in African history. Its origins date, at least, to late colonial Africa, emerging as a response to the European colonial project. The concept envisioned an economically prosperous and politically stable, progressive Africa, rising from the ashes of colonialism. The Senegalese scholar, Cheikh Anta Diop, first articulated the concept in the 1940s to express a rather ambitious vision of rapid social, economic, and political development in postcolonial Africa. In recent years, the ideal of African Renaissance has gained traction in African political discourse.In the early part of this century, post-apartheid South African president, Thabo Mbeki, forcefully articulated a set of developmental goals envisioned to bring about an African renaissance. In addition,the African Union (AU) has called for an African renaissance as it charts pathways towards the overall development of the continent.

Following the attainment of political independence and the recent wave of democratization that swept across the continent, African Renaissance is considered the next major agenda for Africa, which will involve economic, political, and social renewal. The AU in its continental 50-year agenda, called Agenda 2063, envisions a prosperous, peaceful, and integrated Africa, based on the ideals of Pan-Africanism and the vision of African Renaissance, which would usher in a new Africa with global influence, and its states imbued with good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice,and the rule of law.

Abstracts/Panel proposals

Each prospective presenter should submit electronically an abstract of 500 words or less to by Friday, Dec. 31, 2019 to TSUAfricaConference@clutterTnstate.edu