CODESRIA Bulletin Online, No. 4, May 2025 – V. Y. MUDIMBE: A Tribute
Zubairu Wai, University of Toronto, Canada
During the recently concluded Academic Freedom in Africa Conference, convened by CODESRIA at the University of Dar es Salaam, the gathering took a moment out of the planned schedule to reflect upon the late Professor Valentin Mudimbe. Prof. Mudimbe’s passing on 21st April 2025 occurred too close to the event for the Council to formally dedicate a session to him in the conference programme. The Council is grateful to Professor Zubairu Wai, who accepted, on short notice, to step in and deliver a befitting tribute – not only to his teacher, but also to his friend.
While CODESRIA did not have a major engagement with Prof. Mudimbe, his work reverberated immensely in discussions across all major CODESRIA convenings. His concept of the ‘colonial library’ was perhaps a good touchstone not only for conceptualizing the notion of an invented ‘Africa’, but also for exposing the erasure implicit in that construction. This erasure of the non-Europhone intellectuals and the ‘Islamic library’ was the starting point of Professor Ousmane Kane’s critique, originally published by CODESRIA and further elaborated in his subsequent writings.
It takes a great scholar to command the kind of intellectual presence that Prof. Mudimbe did. We are honoured to present a text of Prof. Wai’s tribute to him. On behalf of the Council, we extend our condolences and best wishes to his family and loved ones. To his fellow interlocutors, we are not just inspired by his erudite contributions but are challenged to carry his reflections forward with the depth and clarity he embodied.
