CODESRIA 2 - CODESRIA

Atelier méthodologique sous-régional sur les sciences sociales en Afrique: session 2013 pour l’Afrique Centrale et l’Afrique de l’Ouest Francophones

Thème: Terrains et théories de l’enquête qualitative
Date limite : 31 Mai 2013

Date: 08-12 juillet 2013
Lieu: Yaoundé, Cameroun

Appel à candidatures

Une des faiblesses majeures de la recherche sociale contemporaine en Afrique est le peu de considération accordée aux questions épistémologiques et méthodologiques à un moment où se manifeste une complexité croissante des dynamiques sociales sur le continent et où le contexte mondial appelle à un plus grand investissement dans le perfectionnement des procédures et outils d’enquête et d’analyses pour une évaluation plus pertinente et plus holistique des réalités. Au lieu d’un tel effort, on assiste à une banalisation des protocoles de base de la recherche. Les questions méthodologiques sont parfois instrumentalisées pour satisfaire des considérations idéologiques et justifier des résultats prédéterminés, prenant ainsi le pas sur la science. Les préoccupations épistémologiques et méthodologiques doivent aider à replacer les réalités africaines dans le champ des débats universels sur la validité de la science. Il est courant de rencontrer des études dans lesquelles les questions méthodologiques sont ignorées au nom d’une prétendue immédiateté spécifique qui placerait les réalités sociales africaines hors des débats universels sur la validité de la science. Le résultat est que les sciences sociales y sont le plus souvent un mélange de pur discours littéraire sans fondement empirique, ou alors un exposé d’anecdotes masquées par un discours «savant» aussi pompeux que vide. Dans un tel contexte, les connaissances produites perdent toute portée heuristique pour n’apparaître que comme de simples justificatifs, voulus ou non, d’une politique économique, sociale plus ou moins adaptée. La recherche sociale africaine ne saurait s’accommoder de telle posture. Il est urgent de discuter des fondements méthodologiques de nos connaissances actuelles pour mettre fin à l’impunité scientifique en Afrique et en dehors, et ainsi insuffler un nouvel élan aux sciences sociales africaines à travers le soutien de jeunes chercheurs.

Le devenir des jeunes chercheurs en sciences sociales commence par une excellente maîtrise des procédures de la recherche et leur utilisation patiente à des situations concrètes tel que requis par leur travail sur le terrain, aux archives et à la bibliothèque. Malheureusement, la combinaison des crises prolongées dans les systèmes d’enseignement supérieur et du nombre grandissant d’africanistes qui ont succombé à la tentation de prendre des libertés avec la rigueur méthodologique, signifie que les chercheurs sont mal préparés pour la recherche sociale indépendante. C’est la raison pour laquelle le secrétariat du CODESRIA propose de réunir de jeunes chercheurs africains autour des questions épistémologiques et méthodologiques dans le but de contribuer à la création d’un espace critique qui concilierait l’empirisme courant avec la rigueur logique des préalables épistémologiques si indispensables à l’avènement de toute imagination scientifique. Une telle perspective commande que soient soumis à la critique du terrain africain les étapes, les outils et les grands courants théoriques contemporains qui y sont engagés. La question principale sera alors la suivante: comment établir un lien fécond entre théories et terrains en tenant compte de l’état des savoirs et des techniques mobilisables et de l’évolution des sociétés africaines? L’opposition habituelle entre méthodes quantitatives et qualitatives repose sur le fait que la pratique scientifique a été alourdie par une fausse perception de la validité des procédures de la recherche: une trop grande fétichisation du chiffre a laissé peu de crédit aux orientations qualitatives perçues comme trop inconstantes par rapport à l’exactitude supposée et à la «dureté» de la souveraine quantification. Or, au-delà des querelles académiques, il nous faut insister sur la recherche de moyens appropriés à l’exploration de la dynamique sociale africaine, extrêmement complexe, qui échappe souvent à la rigide emprise, trop systématique, des approches quantitativistes.

La session 2013 sera consacrée à l’examen des conditions de la mise en œuvre et de la validité d’une perspective qualitative sur les terrains africains. A cet effet, les ateliers sont ouverts à toutes les disciplines des sciences sociales qui sont toutes confrontées aux difficultés d’appréhension de la réalité sociale comme elles sont constamment en prise avec les performances limitées des techniques de collecte et d’analyse des données suspectées, parce que dites «qualitatives», d’un grave manque de rigueur scientifique. Le dévoilement du sens caché de la vie sociale leur serait ainsi irrémédiablement inaccessible. Les axes suivants doivent alors être placés au centre de la discussion:

En partant d’une remise en cause de la distinction hâtivement établie entre recherche «quantitative» et recherche «qualitative», l’atelier s’efforcera par l’examen critique de ce clivage traditionnel de poser le problème de la mesure dans les sciences sociales; le mode de traitement des données recueillies répond à la fois aux contraintes du terrain et aux choix paradigmatiques d’interprétation des données. Une telle remise en question devrait nous conduire finalement à interroger les formes et les conditions de «quantification» du «qualitatif». Le caractère non métrique et compréhensif de l’approche qualitative, opposé à celle mathématique et explicative de la quantification, est-il définitivement certifié?

Contre l’illusion du savoir immédiat, il est impératif de poser clairement les principes méthodologiques de la «construction de l’objet» comme articulation hypothétique d’une reconstruction théorique de la réalité sociale. Cette opération cruciale impose que soit soumis à une intense vigilance épistémologique le statut du chercheur, le rôle systématique des théories et des outils de recherche.

L’enquête en tant que procédure de confrontation au terrain d’un corps d’hypothèses nécessite que soit fait un choix raisonné des instruments techniques de collecte des données, des «faits». Les outils traditionnels de recherche qualitative tels que les interviews, l’observation, l’étude des archives et d’autres moins usités comme la photographie, seront passés en revue, afin de déterminer leurs potentiels dans la construction de projets de recherche.

L’atelier méthodologique est destiné aux étudiants doctorants et aux jeunes chercheurs africains des pays de l’Afrique Centrale et de l’Afrique de l’Ouest Francophones. La langue de travail est le français. La session sera conduite par un coordonnateur scientifique secondé par une équipe de deux enseignants tous reconnus pour leur compétence sur le thème de la session. L’équipe pédagogique outre la préparation effective des cours et des sorties sur le terrain proposera aux lauréats un recueil de textes sur le thème de l’atelier. Chaque chercheur désirant faire partie de l’équipe pédagogique est prié d’envoyer son dossier de candidature comprenant son CV actualisé et un résumé des questions qu’il souhaiterait aborder en trois cours. Le résumé soumis devra être assez détaillé pour permettre au directeur de l’atelier de préparer un syllabus pour les personnes ressources et les lauréats. L’équipe pédagogique outre la préparation effective des cours et des sorties sur le terrain proposera aux lauréats un recueil de textes sur le thème de l’atelier.

Quant aux jeunes chercheurs qui aimeraient participer à cet atelier, ils doivent envoyer un dossier de candidature qui comprendra les pièces suivantes :

1. Une lettre de candidature indiquant le thème de recherche du postulant.
2. Un projet de recherche (trois à cinq pages maximum) présentant clairement la problématique, la pertinence du terrain, le cadre théorique et méthodologique utilisé ainsi que les problèmes méthodologiques et épistémologiques rencontrés
3. Un curriculum vitae détaillé et actualisé
4. Deux lettres de recommandation:
5. une du directeur de la thèse ou d’un autre superviseur montrant la pertinence du projet de recherche, l’état d’avancement de la recherche et l(es) approche(s) théorétique(s) et méthodologique(s) utilisée(s) et les résultats attendus;
6. une autre du directeur du département ou d’un autre professeur sur les mérites et le potentiel académiques du candidat.
7. Une lettre d’affiliation institutionnelle.
8. Une photocopie du passeport

La sélection des dossiers se fera en fonction du caractère novateur de la proposition de recherche, de l’équilibre en genre et de la répartition géographique qui en elle même sera un important aspect de l’atelier.

La date limite de dépôt des dossiers de candidature est fixée au 31 Mai 2013. Les dossiers sont adressés à:

ATELIERS METHODOLOGIQUES SOUS-REGIONAUX
CODESRIA
B.P. 3304, Dakar, CP 18524 – Sénégal.
Tel: +221-33 825.98.22/23
Fax: +221-33 824.12.89
E-mail: methodological.workshop@codesria.sn
Site web: https://codesria.org

Atelier méthodologique sous-régional sur les sciences sociales en Afrique : session 2013 pour l’Afrique du Nord

Thème: Terrains et théories de l’enquête qualitative
Date limite : 27 juillet 2013

Date: 04-08 Novembre 2013
Lieu: CRASC, Oran, Algérie

Appel à candidatures

1 – En partant d’une remise en cause de la distinction hâtivement établie entre recherche «quantitative» et recherche «qualitative», l’atelier s’efforcera par l’examen critique de ce clivage traditionnel de poser le problème de la mesure dans les sciences sociales; le mode de traitement des données recueillies répond à la fois aux contraintes du terrain et aux choix paradigmatiques d’interprétation des données. Une telle remise en question devrait nous conduire finalement à interroger les formes et les conditions de «quantification» du «qualitatif». Le caractère non métrique et compréhensif de l’approche qualitative, opposé à celle mathématique et explicative de la quantification, est-il définitivement certifié?

2 – Contre l’illusion du savoir immédiat, il est impératif de poser clairement les principes méthodologiques de la «construction de l’objet» comme articulation hypothétique d’une reconstruction théorique de la réalité sociale. Cette opération cruciale impose que soit soumis à une intense vigilance épistémologique le statut du chercheur, le rôle systématique des théories et des outils de recherche.

3 – L’enquête en tant que procédure de confrontation au terrain d’un corps d’hypothèses nécessite que soit fait un choix raisonné des instruments techniques de collecte des données, des «faits». Les outils traditionnels de recherche qualitative telles que les interviews, l’observation, l’étude des archives et d’autres moins usités tels que la photographie, seront passés en revue, afin de déterminer leurs potentiels dans la construction de projets de recherche.

L’atelier méthodologique est destiné aux étudiants doctorants et aux jeunes chercheurs africains de la sous-région. Les pays concernés sont tous les pays d’Afrique du Nord. Les langues de travail sont le français et l’arabe. La session sera conduite par un coordonnateur scientifique secondé par une équipe de deux enseignants tous reconnus pour leur compétence sur le thème de la session. L’équipe pédagogique outre la préparation effective des cours et des sorties sur le terrain proposera aux lauréats un recueil de textes sur le thème de l’atelier. Chaque chercheur désirant faire partie de l’équipe pédagogique est prié d’envoyer son dossier de candidature comprenant son CV actualisé et un résumé des questions qu’il souhaiterait aborder en trois cours. Le résumé soumis devra être assez détaillé pour permettre au directeur de l’atelier de préparer un syllabus pour les personnes ressources et les lauréats. L’équipe pédagogique outre la préparation effective des cours et des sorties sur le terrain proposera aux lauréats un recueil de textes sur le thème de l’atelier.

Quant aux jeunes chercheurs qui aimeraient participer à cet atelier, ils doivent envoyer un dossier de candidature qui comprendra les pièces suivantes :

La sélection des dossiers se fera en fonction du caractère novateur de la proposition de recherche, de l’équilibre en genre et de la répartition géographique qui en elle-même sera un important aspect de l’atelier.

La date limite de dépôt des dossiers de candidature est fixée au 27 juillet 2013. Les dossiers sont adressés à:

C.R.A.S.C.
Centre de recherche en anthropologie sociale et culturelle BP 1955 Oran El M’Naouer – ALGERIE Technopôle de l’U.S.T.O – Bir El Djir – Oran – ALGERIE
Tel : +213.41.56.04.73/74/76
Fax : +213.41.56.04.63
E-mail : methodological.workshop2013@crasc-dz.org
Site web : www.crasc-dz.org

CODESRIA Methodology Workshop Series: Training the Trainers

Theme: Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Social Science Research
Deadline: 26 april, 2013

Date: 17-21June 2013
Venue: Dakar, Senegal

Call for Applications

Are you a lecturer in an African university? Do you have responsibility for the teaching of courses on research methods? If so, this announcement is targeted at you.

The Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa is pleased to announce its initiative targeted at those members of the African social research community who have responsibility in their universities for teaching undergraduate and graduate-level course in social science research methods. Over the two last decades, in cognisance of the multi-faceted crises confronting the African higher education system in general and the universities in particular, CODESRIA has invested itself in offering platforms for postgraduate students and mid-career professionals to be offered opportunities for training in quantitative and qualitative research methods. The first tranche of such training opportunities centred on quantitative research methods; over the last few years, the accent was shifted to qualitative research methods. Organised as advanced research seminars at which participants were exposed to various methodological techniques and their roots in the history and philosophy of science. CODESRIA organises five research methodology workshops every year on the basis of one per sub-region, one specially dedicated to Nigeria, and one for countries coming out of conflict situations. In the context of the decentralisation of the management of the workshops to various university and advanced research centres, the Council now also organises an annual advanced training of trainers methodology workshop bringing together those who have responsibility for imbuing others with the basic skills they require in order to be successful researchers.

The rationale for all CODESRIA methodology workshops remains the same: As a field of knowledge, quantitative and qualitative methods have a specialist status which is not given to all social scientists fully to master both in its technical details and philosophical underpinnings. Also, the field of social science research methods, both qualitative and quantitative, has undergone a considerable amount of evolution marked by an incremental improvement in the tools and techniques available to the researcher. And yet, historically, it is an area of pedagogy that was relatively weak in African social research; the weakness was exacerbated by the massive brain that affected the university system in the aftermath of the crises in the university system. This development constituted a major disadvantage for a younger generation of social researchers and was refracted into the overall quality of research carried out. Remedying the gap became a matter for urgent concern; the training of trainers programme represents the latest in the series of interventions developed by the CODESRIA, launched in the context of the organic inter-connection between the research purpose of the university and the mandate and programmatic strategy of the Council.

For the 2013 session of the training of trainers’ workshop, it is proposed to invite up to 25 participants. The workshop will be conducted in English and French. In addition to the presentations that would be made by invited resource persons, the workshop will be structured as a forum for close interaction and networking among the participants so that, beyond the formal sessions, they would be able to continue to share experiences on a continuing basis. Practical lecture-room exercises will also be included as part of the training. Each session will be facilitated by a convenor who will be assisted by three resource persons. The session will be organised over five working days. Each participant will be given access to the latest materials – electronic and non-electronic – available on research methods; presentations will also be made on the philosophy of science.

Those interested in applying to participate in the 2013 session are invited to submit a written application, a copy of their course outline, a short write-up on the major problems they encounter in teaching their methodology classes, a letter of attestation from their departmental head or faculty dean indicating that they do teach courses in methodology, and a copy of their latest Curriculum Vitae. For those interested in being considered to serve as convenor or resource persons, they are invited to send a short letter of application, a copy of their curriculum vitae, a copy of the outline of issues they wish to cover in their presentations, and a sample of one or more of their most recent publication (s). All applications must be received at the CODESRIA Executive Secretariat by 26 april, 2013. Applications should be addressed to:

The CODESRIA Training of Trainers Methodology Programme,
The CODESRIA Secretariat,
BP 3304, Dakar, CP 18524, Senegal.
Tel.: +221-33 825 98 22/23
Fax: +221-33 824 12 89
E-mail: training.trainers@codesria.sn
Website: https://codesria.org

Sub-Regional Methodology Workshops for Social Research in Africa: 2013 Session for East and Southern Africa

Theme: Fields and Theories of Qualitative Research
Deadline: 28 June, 2013

Date: 23 – 27 September 2013
Venue: Naïrobi, Kenya

Call for Applications

Introduction

One of the major weaknesses of contemporary social research in and about Africa is its lack of careful attention to epistemological and methodological issues. This weakness has made itself manifest at a time when the increasing complexities of the social dynamics that shape livelihood on the continent and the wider global context call for a greater investment of effort in the refinement of the procedures and instruments of investigation and analyses, with a view to achieving a more accurate and holistic assessment of rapidly changing realities. But instead of such an investment of effort, we are increasingly witnessing an astonishing neglect or misapplication of theory and method on such a scale and with such a frequency that calls for intervention.
_ At one level, the neglect that has taken place has comprised a serious trivialisation of basic research protocols and their reduction to a fetishistic evocation of superficial recommendations, thinly disguised with ritualistic appeals to rigour that are not reflected in the analyses undertaken. At another level, methodological issues have simply been instrumentalised in ways that ensure that narrow ideological considerations and pre-determined outcomes take precedence over science. Furthermore, it is not uncommon nowadays to come across studies in which methodological questions are outrightly ignored in the name of an alleged specificity or immediacy that amounts to the exclusion of African social realities from universal debates on the validity of scientific frames of analyses. The result is that in those debates, studies produced on Africa come across as a mix of purely literary discourses without an empirical anchorage, or anecdotes hidden under a “scholarly” discourse that is not only pretentious but also vacuous. Consequently, the knowledge produced is bereft of heuristic value and simply becomes an element that, wittingly or unwittingly, justifies a predetermined set of economic, political and social policies.
_ This is clearly not an acceptable state of affairs, even if only because it impoverishes African social research. It is, therefore, high time that the social research community revisited and discussed the methodological foundations of current knowledge about Africa in order to, first, put an end to scientific impunity as it manifests itself within and outside Africa, and then, give a new impulse to the African social sciences through support programmes targeted at younger researchers.

The future of young social researchers begins with an excellent mastery of core research processes and their patient application to concrete situations as demanded by their work in the field, the archives and the library. Unfortunately, the combination of the prolonged crises in African higher education systems and the poor example set in the writings of an increasing number of Africanists, who have succumbed to the temptation to take liberties with methodological rigour, mean that younger African researchers are poorly served in matters of training for independent social research. It is for this reason that CODESRIA has decided to take young African researchers through workshops on epistemological and methodological issues in social research, designed to fill the gaps in their formal and informal training. The workshops are meant to serve as a critical space that would offer experience-sharing in the basic epistemological and empirical prerequisites for rigorous scientific imagination. The workshops will not only offer insights into the current state of the art but also provide an occasion for a critical review of contemporary research procedures, tools and theories as seen from an African perspective. The major question which the workshops will address can be summarised as follows:

How can the researcher productively establish a link between dominant theoretical approaches and concrete situations in the field whilst simultaneously taking into account the state of knowledge, the techniques to be mobilised, and the evolution of African societies?

In answering this question, the workshops will privilege qualitative research methods and tools on the basic premise that the popular tendency to oppose quantitative and qualitative methods is due to a wrong assumption that the former offers an exactness and “hardness” which the latter is supposedly too “soft” and “fickle” to match. Without diminishing the importance of quantitative research and methods, participants in the workshops will be encouraged to explore qualitative methods of capturing African social dynamics which do not always or often find expression, fully or partially, in figures and which are, therefore, lost to those who are wedded to rigid and exclusively quantitative approaches.

Organisation

The 2013 session of the CODESRIA sub-regional methodological workshops will explore the conditions for the employment and validation of qualitative perspectives in African contexts. To this end, the workshops will be open to all the social research disciplines. These disciplines are uniformly confronted with broadly similar difficulties of understanding social reality and the challenges posed by techniques of data collection and analysis, which, on account of their “qualitative” nature, are suspected by some to be seriously lacking in scientific rigour. Each workshop will have the following concerns at its core:

1. A critical assessment of the distinction between “quantitative” and “qualitative” research with particular attention to the question of measurement in the social sciences. Participants will be taken through presentations and exercises aimed at showing that the mode of processing data that is collected depends both on the field constraints encountered and the paradigmatic options of data interpretation that are available. The procedures for the “quantification” of “qualitative” approaches will also be reviewed through discussions on the distinction between the non-metrical and “comprehensive” presentation of data and the more mathematical renditions favoured by the quantitativists.

2. A presentation of the methodological principles of “object construction” which enables the researcher to transcend the illusions of immediate knowledge and undertake a hypothetical reconstruction of social reality. This demands that the status of the researcher, as well as the systematic role of theories and tools be subjected to intense epistemological control.

3. An assessment of various techniques of data collection and “fact-finding” instruments available to the researcher. The usual tools of qualitative research such as interviews, observation, archival studies, and the less usual ones such as photography, will be reviewed, so as to locate their potentiality for construction of successful research projects.

Eligibility

The East and Southern Africa edition of the methodology workshops is designed for doctoral and masters students and young, mid-career African researchers resident in East and Southern Africa.

Working Language

The language to be employed during the workshop is English.

Co-ordination

The workshop will be directed by a senior scholar who will work as the scientific coordinator, assisted by a team of two lecturers, all with an acknowledged expertise in the application of social science research methods. Senior researchers who would like to be considered for a role as resource persons are hereby invited to send their applications, indicating their interest, with their current CVs and outlines of issues they would like to cover in three lectures. The outlines submitted should be detailed enough to enable the scientific coordinator of the workshop to compile a syllabus for the guidance of the resource persons and laureates. Apart from the actual preparation of lectures and field visits, the resource persons will also be expected to submit a bibliographic list of texts relevant to the theme of the workshop and which can be made available to the laureates.

Application Procedures

Scholars and younger, mid-career researchers who wish to be considered for participation in the workshop, are hereby required to each submit an application that should comprise the following:

1. A letter of motivation which should also clearly indicate the area of research or topic on which they are working;
2. A statement of their research project (maximum of three to five pages) stating clearly the problematic that is being addressed, the kinds of field research to be undertaken, the theoretical and methodological
framework being used, as well as the methodological and epistemological problems encountered;
3. A detailed and up-to-date curriculum vitae;
4. Two reference letters, one of which must be from the thesis supervisor and the other from the head of the department in which the applicant is registered. The reference letter from the supervisor is expected to address the relevance of the research project, the state of progress of the research and the theoretical and methodological approaches used, as well as the results expected. The reference letter from the head of the department is expected to attest to the qualities and academic potential of the candidate; and
5. A letter confirming the institutional affiliation of the applicant.
6. A copy of the passport

Oral Presentation

All selected applicants will be expected to give a presentation on their proposals to resource persons and other laureates during the methodology workshop.

Applications will be selected on basis of the innovative nature of the research question being addressed, a commitment to gender balance that is central to CODESRIA’s institutional strategy, and the desire for a geographical diversity that will, in itself, constitute an important aspect of the learning experience at the workshops. All applications, accompanied by all required documents must reach the address below, latest by 28 June, 2013:

CODESRIA Sub-Regional Methodology Workshops
(2011 Session for East and Southern Africa)
CODESRIA
P.O. Box: 3304, Dakar, CP 18524 – Senegal.
Tél.: +221-33 825.98.22/23 — Fax: +221-33 824.12.89
E-mail: methodological.workshop@codesria.sn
Web site: https://codesria.org

CODESRIA National Working Groups: A Call for Proposals for 2013

Deadline: 31 May, 2013

One of the most important vehicles by which CODESRIA has sought to mobilise national-level research capacities and to channel these into organised reflections has been the National Working Groups (NWGs) which has encouraged African researchers to organise autonomously on priority themes of their choice. NWGs have been supported by the Council in over forty African countries and have resulted in some of the most interesting studies on politics, economy and society in contemporary Africa. Within the framework of the CODESRIA strategic plan for the period 2012 – 2016, it has been decided to retain this vehicle as an important instrument for promoting research into and publications about different national-level experiences pertinent to the pre-occupations of African scholars active in the Social Sciences and Humanities. For this purpose, the Council invites proposals for the constitution of NWGs under the 2013 competition for the research grants that are available.

An innovation which the Council has decided to pursue within the NWG programme is the encouragement of a more systematic anchorage of the projects which it supports within specific departments, faculties, and research centres of African universities or independent and established research networks and centres, as well as the allocation of resources for the dissemination of the results of the work of the NWG to a cross-section of the local research community in the country in which the study was undertaken. All proposals submitted for consideration for support by CODESRIA within this programme have been required since 2007 to demonstrate this institutional anchorage and budget for an end-of-study dissemination workshop.

CODESRIA has also initiated since 2008 a meeting of National Working Group Coordinator. The main objectives of the meeting are to reflect on ways of improving and further developing the NWG programme, to strengthen and facilitate the work of NWGs at the national level, to enhance the quality of their outputs, and enhance their visibility both at the national and at the continental level, and to strengthen the CODESRIA identity of the groups.

There is no fixed amount for the grants that are awarded for the constitution of NWGs, although, for indicative purposes only, applicants may wish to note that in the past, awards of between USD 7,500 and USD 20,000 have been made by the Council. Also, no particular format is prescribed for the presentation of the budget of an NWG. However, it is recommended that the budget section of the proposals which are submitted should include allocations for: (i) a methodology workshop to launch the NWG; (ii) a mid-term review workshop to assess the progress of the work of the NWG; (iii) a final/dissemination workshop at which the results of the work of the group will be presented to a wider audience; (iv) the allowance that will be needed for any fieldwork that will be undertaken by the members of the group; (v) the honoraria of the members of the group; and (vi) books which might be purchased by the group and which will be lodged in the departmental or faculty library of a designated African university; or the library of an established research network or centre. Please note that the funds must be managed in a special account for the NWG.

The size of an NWG will vary from country to country but on average, most of the groups sponsored by CODESRIA in the past have had between five and seven members. It is advantageous to ensure that a proposed NWG is multidisciplinary in composition, sensitive to gender issues both in its composition and research concerns, and accommodating of younger scholars who might simultaneously benefit from being mentored through their participation in the research project.

Proposals, which could be on any topic relevant for an understanding of the economy, politics, culture, environment and society in any African country, should:

i) indicate clearly the problematic that will be addressed;
ii) should not exceed 12 pages (except for team member’s CVs); Font: Times New Roman; Size: 12; Space: simple;
iii) include a review of the relevant literature, including literature produced by the local research community on the subject;
iv) indicate the methodology which would be employed in undertaking the study;
v) spell out the composition of the Working Group;
vi) define the time frame for inauguration and finalisation of the work that would be undertaken;
vii) specify strategies for anchoring the activities of the Working Group within a department or faculty of an African university, or an African research network or centre;
viii) indicate a strategy for the dissemination of the results of the work of the Group;
ix) include an outline budget for the realisation of the research project; and
x) indicate the expected final outcome of the project.

Proposals for consideration for possible funding within the framework of the 2013 competition should be sent to CODESRIA by 31 May, 2013 at the latest. All proposals received will undergo an independent review process, the outcome of which will be announced by 31 July, 2013. A methodology workshop for the selected NWG coordinators will take place in September 2013. All proposals (electronic version) should be addressed to:

CODESRIA National Working Groups Programme
CODESRIA
BP 3304, CP 18524
Dakar, Senegal.
Tel: +221-33 825 98 22/23
Fax: +221-33 824 12 89
E-Mail: nwg@codesria.sn
Website: https://codesria.org

NB: In addition to the CVs of the network members required, the identification sheet attached for the updated database of the Council shall be filled and sent along with the elements of NWG. Any application submitted does not contain the required elements will not be taken into account.

2013 IASC Africa Regional Meeting

Research has shown that success in dealing with problems facing Africa commons management may lie in addressing fragmentation of the knowledge base and, hence, management policy. Traditionally management has been carried out by government agencies that focus on a particular sector, e.g. fisheries, agriculture or forestry, using knowledge from scientists that specialise in that sector, and working with community groups to create and enforce rules developed for that sector. With the advent of the ecosystem approach to natural resource management, which is based in turn on a growing appreciation of the interrelatedness of both the ecological and socio-economic dynamics of natural resources, new cross-disciplinary scientific networks are needed that are able to identify specific areas of sectoral interconnections, articulate and implement the required research, and translate the results into advice for policy makers, development practitioners and resource users.

UPDATE: Call for papers – Deadline extended to February 8th, 2013.

The objective of this Policy Forum is to bring such networks (formal or informal) together with policy makers and other stakeholders to curve the way forward for effective, integrated commons management. The panel therefore invites researchers working in these and related issues (e.g. poverty and gender) in the African contexts to submit abstracts for papers exploring the meeting themes and how dealing with them is affected by fragmented resources management systems and solutions required.

Meeting Themes

Within the broad area of integrated management of multiple types of natural resource complex commons we place our emphasis on the presentation of policy relevant research on the commons that networks and individual African and other scholars are currently carrying out. Therefore the following themes are meant to be suggestive rather than exclusive:

Defragmenting African resources management

The overall broad objectives of resource management are to facilitate the protection of biodiversity and promote poverty alleviation using exploited commons. Integral to achieving these broad objectives is conflict resolution, because ecological degradation leads to competition for the remaining resources. Therefore, effective, integrated commons management addresses three related sets of problems simultaneously:

a) limiting access to resources to prevent overexploitation;
b) economic development that relieves poverty while respecting utilised resource capacity limits, and
c) managing the conflicts that arise when access to resources is limited.

All three of these problems require integrated knowledge. The limits must be set through the work of natural scientists, both poverty alleviation and the effective implementation of management require the work of social scientists, and managing conflicts requires involving stakeholders who know the locally appropriate solutions. Lately theoretical frameworks such as ecosystem approach, adaptive management, systems approach, and integrated resources management (e.g. integrated water resources management- IWRM) have been developed and implemented.
This theme seeks case studies or theoretical analysis of solutions (or attempts) based on trans-disciplinarity and multi-disciplinarity concepts adapted to deal with issues of fragmentation and their attendant problems in management of the commons in Africa. For example some Southern African countries are implementing the management oriented monitoring system (MOMS) for wildlife and veld products monitoring within the context of community based natural resources management (CBNRM) and in line with the concept of adaptive management.

Institutional Choice and Recognition in African Forest Governance

Local democracy is local governance that is responsive and accountable to local people – by being responsive it represents local needs, by being accountable to local people it can be considered democratic. Agents intervening in the local arena, including governments, donors and international institutions, choose local partners. These choices recognize certain forms of local governance – certain institutions and authorities as well as supporting particular sets of rules and regulations. In so doing they strengthen some forms of local governance and may weaken others. Local democracy, representation, inclusion and participation are often studied from the bottom up – exploring how local actors insert themselves into governing processes through engagement and resistance. The Choice and Recognition theme focuses on two aspects of the development of local democracy as it is shaped by higher-scale intervening agents. First, this theme examines ‘choices’ focusing on why intervening agents privilege certain kinds of local institutions and authorities. It examines the logic and procedures of the intervening agencies. What do they understand local democracy to be? How do they operationalize it? How do they translate democratic impulses into practice? Second, it examines how these choices effect local democracy. How do the recognized institutions and authorities support democratic processes in the local arena?

Sub-themes include:

Institutional Choice I: Donor Understanding and Making of Democracy
Institutional Choice II: Government Understanding and Making of Local Democracy
Recognition I: The Cultivation of Sub-National Authority from Above through REDD
Recognition II: Pluralisms and Representation in REDD intervention
Recognition III: Participatory Processes and REDD — Representation within Stakeholder Approaches
Recognition IV: Customary Authority and Local Democracy: Donor Roles in Cultivating Chieftaincy
Public Domain: Enclosures – REDD, Privatization and Democratic Spaces
Local Democracy Effects of Global REDD Processes and Forest Commodification on a Global Scale

Embracing and harnessing local indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) in natural resources management

Out of the action research tradition has emerged a very large literature on indigenous knowledge systems in general (IKS) and local ecological knowledge (LEK) in particular, concepts which are extremely important in integrated commons management. Wilson et al. (2006) argue that LEK has a critical role to play in making management effective from the perspective of both the content and timeliness of information and increased legitimacy and cooperation. To make an effective contribution towards defragmentation of resource management such knowledge systems should be revealed and integrated as part of comprehensive studies involving ongoing interactions between resource users, scientists and other stakeholders. This theme proposes papers that would document lessons and experiences of IK and LEK in Africa and answer some of the following questions:

What is the condition of and how robust are IK and LEK systems for resource management?
How is IK and LEK distributed and transferred across generations, age, gender and economic groups in rural societies?
Do social, cultural, spiritual, political, etc factors influence use and/or sharing of IK and LEK among such social, economic and political groups?
How are IK and LEK systems and attendant management skills and approaches perceived by external agencies?

Effective knowledge translation for defragmenting natural resource management in Africa

Knowledge translation has been described as the practice, science, and art of bridging the know–do gap between knowledge accumulation and use (Ottoson 2009). It is therefore a potential stakeholder interaction and integration platform. Effective communication of research is integral to defragmenting natural resources management, successful knowledge translation, and good research practice. Whilst so, concerns are growing regarding inadequate knowledge translation from science research into practice and policy. The status quo constrains the potential of scientific research to maximally contribute to socio-economic development and environmental sustainability. It has been argued that while a substantial body of research knowledge has been generated to inform policy and practice, there is little to show in terms of application for policy and practice especially in Africa.

This theme calls on environmental communication and knowledge translation experts and others working in the area within the African context to submit abstracts which share experience or review theory to model appropriate knowledge translation models to defragment African natural resources management.

The effect of fragmented management and the additional stressors such as HIV/AIDS and climate change

Extreme events such as droughts, hurricanes or floods increasingly affect people from low income countries everywhere in the world. Africa is particularly affected as 70% of its population rely on natural resources. HIV and AIDS and other endemic diseases present other stressors on communities and households. A fragmented approach to resources management therefore weakens the people’s capacity to adapt and cope with these stressors. Women are likely to be particularly affected by a fragmented approach to resource management and dealing with shocks from extreme events and endemic diseases since they bear the burden of household sustenance and are often among the poorest of society. Adaptation to these shocks and epidemics require integrated systems that bring innovation but also look to indigenous adaption and coping strategies.

Implications of urbanisation and commercialisation for management of the African commons

The governance and management of the African commons is becoming increasingly complex due to multiple pressures on commonage land and resources. Two such pressures are rapid urbanisation and economic transformations of the commons. Urbanisation presents distinctive new challenges with respect to the commons, such as more intensified urban-rural linkages in terms of food production, land speculation, urban sprawl and other urban – periphery political-economic relations. Moreover, commons usage are being taken to urban environments, for example in urban agriculture. Economic challenges to commons governance and management are, for example, pressures for commercialisation of land and resources, rural unemployment and the search by rural youth for jobs in urban centres. Amongst others, this leads to questions around privatisation and individualisation, with due consequences for common property. This theme invites papers exploring the following questions:

How have African rural-urban relations changed over the last decades due to urbanisation and what are the effects on the governance and management of the commons?
What types of urban commons are evolving and how are they governed?
What type of general political-economic challenges and opportunities can be identified with respect to the commons?
What are the effects of increasing pressures for commercialisation of land and resources and land speculation for access to and governance of rural commons?
What is the effect of rural unemployment and the rural-urban labour migration for rural and urban commons?
How can the link between the globally dominant political ideology of neoliberalism and African commons be conceptualised?

Practical details

Please submit your abstracts to: lmagole@ori.ub.bw and fmatose@gmail.com by no later than February 8th, 2013.

Submission guidelines

Submitted abstracts should be in MS Word and use the following format:

_ Title
_ Authors and their affiliations
_ 200 maximum word abstract
_ Minimum 10 point Times New Roman font
_ Corresponding author contact information

Registration fee

_ Researchers: US$200
_ Students: US$75
_ Conference dinner: US$30

Programme Committee

Dr Lapologang Magole, Chair, Okavango Research Institute, University of Botswana
Private Bag 285, Maun
Botswana
Tel: (+267) 681 7227/7200
Fax: (+267) 686 1835
lmagole@ori.ub.bw

Dr Frank Matose, Co-Chair, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Assoc Prof Mafa Hara, University of the Western Cape, South Africa (Chair of Organising Committee)
Dr James Murombedzi, CODESRIA
Prof Jesse Ribot, University of Illinois
Assoc Prof Doug Wilson, Aalborg University, Denmark
Dr Linda Mhlanga, University of Zimbabwe
Prof Tobias Haller, Institute of Social Anthropology, University of Berne, Switzerland
Assoc Prof Bram Buscher, Institute for Social Studies, The Netherlands
Dr Peter Mvula, University of Malawi

Co-sponsorship

Defragmenting African Resource Management Project (DARMA) ACP Science and Technology Programme, 9th European Development Fund
Responsive Forest Governance Initiative (RFGI): A collaborative project of CODESRIA, the University of Illinois at Urbana Champagne, and IUCN, Funded by SIDA
Institute for Poverty Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Cape
International Association for the Study of the Commons (IASC)

Fore more informations visit this link

Job Opening: OSIWA Higher Education Support Program Officer

POSITION RE-ADVERTISEMENTOPEN SOCIETY INITIATIVE FOR WEST AFRICA (OSIWA)

Higher Education Support Program Officer

The Open Society Foundations work to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens. To achieve this mission, the Foundations seek to shape public policies that assure greater fairness in political, legal, and economic systems and safeguard fundamental rights. On a local level, the Open Society Foundations implement a range of initiatives to advance justice, education, public health, and independent media. At the same time, we build alliances across borders and continents on issues such as corruption and freedom of information. The Foundations place a high priority on protecting and improving the lives of people in marginalized communities.

Higher education institutions and actors are instrumental in the establishment and consolidation of open societies committed to inclusion, critical thinking, human rights, justice, and democracy. The International Higher Education Support Program (HESP) is committed to supporting universities and members of their communities by nurturing their capacity and leadership for well-informed, vigorous, and inclusive social deliberation, specifically in societies in transition. To this end, the program promotes academic autonomy and critical thinking, favors innovation and imagination, and aids in building transparent and effective institutional governance and countering “brain drain.”

The International Higher Education Support Program (HESP) supports initiatives that aim to advance:

Open Minds: developing academics’ intellectual skills – including critical thinking – to prepare them for high-level work and sustainable impact;
Open Universities: institutions that function reflexively in line with the values of open societies, where freedom to think and speak critically and to inquire are respected and encouraged;
Open Teaching: the roles universities play in training intellectually competent and critical students, generating cutting-edge research and cultivating and securing access to the best teaching practices and approaches;
Public Intellectual Activity: reaching out towards the development of a public intellectual sphere vital for strong and vibrant societies.

HESP is seeking a Program Officer to be based in one of the OSF offices in Africa or Europe and reports to the HESP Director.

Purpose of Position: To design, implement and administer the HESP programs in the African continent; to implement and administer the Africa Climate Change Adaptation Initiative (ACCAI). Work is carried out independently/under general supervision.

RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. OSF may add, change, or remove essential and other duties at any time.

In cooperation with the HESP Director, work on the design and the implementation of the HESP strategies and programs in Africa; In cooperation with the HESP Director and the ACCAI interim Director, work on the implementation of the ACCAI strategies and programs in Africa;
Establish contacts with institutions/departments/scholars in Africa and outside the continent with relevance to African HE;
Coordinate communication and organize meetings with the relevant stakeholders within and outside OSF;
Coordinate the announcement and advertising process for the various programs, including the design of the call for application and application forms where relevant;
Coordinate the solicitation and selection procedures;
Administer the grants of the selected partners;
Create a database of the programs;
Prepare the HESP Africa Programs budget;
Responsible for the implementation of the annual Africa related HESP strategies and prepare report of the actions undertaken for submission to the HESP Sub-Board;
Prepare reports for the Director, the HESB and other partners and stakeholders;
Solicit, review and analyze reports;
Organize program reviews;
Monitor implementation through correspondence and site-visits;
Disseminate and cooperate with similar initiatives and potential partners;
Participate in other HESP activities providing input to other, related programs and projects;
Travel is required;
Perform other duties as assigned

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

Bachelor’s degree (B.A.) from a four-year college or university with a minimum of seven years relevant experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Master’s degree in Humanities or Social Sciences preferred;
Good understanding of the higher education system and development in Africa;
Very good written and oral English and French language skills;
Commitment to the mission of OSF, HESP and ACCAI;

University teaching and research background would be an asset.

SKILLS REQUIRED:

Effectively manage to work efficiently in a fast-paced environment, troubleshoot and follow projects through to completion, with strict deadlines and without loss of attention to detail, budget and reporting;

Excellent written, verbal, organizational, analytical and interpersonal skills;
Excellent computer skills, proficient in Microsoft Office and experience with internet research and database management;
Exercise good listening and communication skills with sensitivity to cultural communication differences;
Effectively work as a team member and independently, with a high-level of self-motivation and ability to set and meet goals;
Show discretion and ability to handle confidential issues;
Knowledge of key organizations and networks active in the field;
Pleasant, diplomatic manner and disposition in interacting with colleagues and the general public;
Good knowledge of OSF computerized management systems would be an asset.

Salary: Commensurate with experience with full benefits.

Start Date: ASAP

Location: To be determined by OSF

To Apply: send resume (in English), cover letter, brief writing sample and salary requirements, by cob 28th February2013 to: osiwarecruitment@osiwa.org

Include job code in subject line: PO-HESP- ACCAI

Early submissions are strongly encouraged

Note: Due to the number of applications we receive, only shortlisted applicants will be contacted by OSIWA.

No phone calls, please. The Open Society Foundations are an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Download the Terms of Reference.

Research Vacancies African Studies Centre Leiden

The African Studies Centre (ASC) in Leiden is seeking to recruit two

Researchers 0.7-1.0 fte

with specialization in political economy, international relations, and/or politics as they relate to Africa with a focus on such issues as the macroeconomics of trade, investment, finance, aid, and remittances; international and/or regional security; the role of so-called emerging powers from Asia and Latin America in Africa; and/or issues of ‘equitable’ or ‘inclusive’ development.

Applicants must have a PhD on a topic relevant to the ASC’s research programme

The African Studies Centre (ASC) in Leiden is seeking to recruit a

Postdoctoral researcher 0.7-1.0 fte

Applicants must have a PhD on a topic relevant to the ASC’s research programme

Join the mailing list for vacancies by sending an e-mail to: asc@ascleiden.nl. Please note that you will also receive vacancies in Dutch. These will not be translated.

For more informations: http://www.ascleiden.nl/?q=content/…

Call for Papers: UNILAG Sociological Review

UNILAG Sociological Review is a peer-reviewed multi-disciplinary journal that publishes scholarly works on contemporary sociological issues of development. The areas covered include theoretical and methodological issues, development, political sociology, deviance, gender, religion, family, industry, urban sociology and demography.

The Editorial Board of the journal uses this medium to call for well-researched papers/articles on relevant contemporary issues of sociological concern to be considered for publication in the next edition of the Journal,

Manuscripts should be prepared in line with the guidelines given below:

• The cover-page should contain the title of the article while information on the author(s) should be on a separate page;

• Every article should begin with an abstract of not more than 200 words (Spacing: Single-line spacing);

• Papers should be word-processed on A4 paper-size, double-spaced and limited to twenty pages inclusive of tables and references.

• Citations should be within the text with a list of references at the end of the article; – Reference should conform to APA style,

• Three hard copies and a diskette copy (MS:-Word format) of completed article should be submitted with an assessment fee of N2, 500.00 cash or in bank draft

• Authors will be notified of the status of their manuscripts.

• Articles accepted for publication should be sent with a publication support fee of NI0, 000.

Every contributor will receive two copies of the journal in which his/her article is published. The views expressed in each article are those of the author. Advertisements and book reviews are also invited.

Articles can be submitted all the year round to:

Prof. F A. D. Oyekanmi
Editor.
E-mail: feduoy@hotmail.com

Chinwe R. Nwanna
Business Manager
E-mail: chironwa@yahoo.com

UNILAG Sociological Review (USR)

Department of Sociology
Faculty of Social Sciences
University of Lagos, Yaba Lagos. Nigeria
Tel: 4932661, 5454891-5, 4723518
Email: socdept2001@yahoo.com.uk

UNILAG SOCIOLOGICAL REVIEW: Call For Papers

Pan-Africanism: Adapting African Stories/Histories from Text to Screen

Date: 25-26 February 2013 Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

CODESRIA, the African Guild of Filmmakers and the Pan African Film & Television Festival (FESPACO)

Pan-Africanism: Adapting African Stories/Histories from Text to Screen

International Workshop, to be held within the framework of the 23rd FESPACO
25-26 February 2013
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

The Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA), in partnership with la Guilde Africaine des Réalisateurs et Producteurs and the Pan African Film & Television Festival (FESPACO), is pleased to announce a two-day workshop on “Pan-Africanism: Adapting Africa Stories/Histories from Text to Screen” which will be held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, on the 25th and 26th of February 2013. FESPACO is a bi-annual event which started in 1969 to promote the development of the African film industry by providing an avenue to reflect on, showcase and celebrate achievements in the industry, thereby contributing African voices and perspectives to the global film and cinema movement.

The workshop is part of the activities marking the 23rd edition of FESPACO, coming up between 22 February and 2 March 2013, under the theme “African Cinema and Public Policy in Africa”.

This workshop is part of a global CODESRIA Programme on Humanities that aims at promoting significant new directions in research and creative excellence in an important but often neglected area – the African Humanities – especially in their interconnection with the social sciences in critical issues of fundamental importance to cultural promotion and dissemination. Within the framework of this programme, CODESRIA has developed a tradition of organizing, during FESPACO, forums for reflections on film making and the cinema in Africa. For CODESRIA in particular, the 2013 workshop is significant as part of the Council’s 40th Anniversary celebrations.

Historically, it is possible to argue that films based on the questions of ‘nation-building’ dominated the first phase of African cinema. The filmmakers organized themselves into a movement called the Fédération Panafricaine des Cinéastes (FEPACI) – the Panafrican Federation of Filmmakers – and decided to adopt, for the language of their films, Frantz Fanon’s thesis – “There is no culture but national culture” – meaning that, to recover the African image from the stereotypes of Hollywood and properly establish a modern African culture and identity, the new African films must thematize and chronicle the liberation struggles of different nations, and denounce neocolonialism and corruption. Some of the important films of this first phase include Sembene Ousmane’s “The Money Order” and “Xala”, which dealt with neo-colonialism; and Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina’s “Chronicle of the Years of Amber”; Med Hondo’s “Saraouina”; Sara Maldoror’ “Sambizanga” and Flora Gomes’ “Mortu Nega”, on the decolonization wars; Souleymane Cisse’s “Baara” and “Finye” on dictatorship and corruption; and Kwaw Ansah’s “Heritage Africa” on the loss of cultural heritage and identity.

The films of liberation struggles, nation building and identity formation were followed, largely at the end of the Cold War, by an ‘author-cinema’ phase, which was characterized by its emphasis on individual philosophical and psychological dispositions toward the world, a film language that was turned inward to refer to itself only, and a cinema in which the style of the director was more important than the logic of the story in the film. Djibril Diop Mambety films – “Touki Bouki” and “Hyena” – are probably the best examples of ‘authorship’ in African cinema. But one could also include in this category such directors as Jean Pierre Bekolo, Haroun Mahat Saleh and Abderrhamane Sissako, to name only a few.

Finally, we have had the video boom in Nigeria, Ghana and everywhere else in Anglophone Africa. Arguably, the video films called “Nollywood” is the most important model here, with a capitalistic conception of cinema more akin to Bollywood and Hollywood, than to what one might call first and second cinemas in Africa. With its studios, use of stars and mainstreamed pidgin English, its producers and distributors who control the market, Nollywood has clearly created a new social imagination in Africa. From a technological standpoint, Nollywood is also compelling because of its output and proliferation of several thousand films, since its inception in the early 1990s. We can say that Nollywood is both modern and backward; good and bad for the African cinema; a purveyor of religious propaganda, and an advocate of individual freedom and choice – all at the same time.

These contradictory images of Africa in Nollywood and the other Anglophone videos bring us to the questions: What are the mass-mediated images of Africa today, in texts, music, film and videos? What is the role of African literature, film and video in the global art world today? Is the desire of African artists for a Pan-Africanist literature, cinema and video a capable of being achieved, in the same way that the first cinemas and literature had set nation-building as their main goal? What would the aesthetic language of Pan-Africanism, the art that sets as its aim the unification of Africa and its Diaspora, consist of today? Crucially, what is the role of adaptation from text to film, to video, to music and plastic arts, and vice versa, in the proliferation of such aesthetics? We could also see here an important role given to the documentary cinema and video genres, which could include archival materials on the history of key Pan-Africanist figures of the past and present.

We invite at the next FESPACO to explore some of these possibilities of Pan-Africanist narratives, aesthetics, theoretical and political configurations in literature, films and videos today.

Speakers will include: Wole Soyinka, Abiola Irele, Kofi Anyidoho, Lindiwe Dovey, Antonio Tomas, Dominica Dipio, Fatou Kande, Abdoulaye Niang, Mbye Cham, Balufu Bakupa-Kanyinda, and Pocas Pascoal,

For further information, please contact:

Professor Manthia Diawara manthia.diawara@nyu.edu

CODESRIA Secretariat
BP 3304 Dakar, CP 18524 Senegal
Tel: +221 33 825 98 22/23
Fax: +221 33 824 12 89
E-mail: humanities.programme@codesria.sn
Website: http//: www.codesria.org/
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/pages/CODES…
Twitter : http://twitter.com/codesria