[Athena] Call for papers for approved panel "Scientific and technical cooperation in Africa in the era of decolonisation: processes and legacies" (11th Iberian Conference on African Studies, Lisbon, July 2020).

[M. Luísa Sousa <luisacoelhosousa AT fct.unl.pt>]

Call for papers within the approved panels: Until February 24, 2020.

Panel: 33 - Scientific and technical cooperation in Africa in the era of decolonisation: processes and legacies (Org. Cláudia Castelo) 

11th Iberian Conference on African Studies CIEA,  2-4 July 2020, School of Arts and Humanities of the University of Lisbon (Portugal)

Communication submission in the Conference website: https://ciea11.pt/index.php/en/

33 - Scientific and technical cooperation in Africa in the era of decolonisation: processes and legacies

Authors

Cláudia Castelo

Institutions

Centro de Estudos Sociais, Universidade de Coimbra

Author Email

claucastelo AT hotmail.com

Abstract

In the post-war, Africa knowledge was seen as crucial from the point of view of several international actors and become a very disputed field. This panel intends to discuss the processes and legacies of the scientific and technical cooperation in Africa, between the post-war and the African independences (circa 1945-1980).

The contributors to the panel should submit papers that analyse the role, features and effective action of scientific and technical cooperation organisations or agents, of inter-imperial, regional or international scope, addressing or taking place in Africa, such as the Commission for Technical Cooperation in Africa South of the Sahara (CCTA), the Scientific Council for Africa (CSA), the Scientific, Technical and Research Commission of the African Unit Organisation (STRC-AUO), United Nations agencies (FAO, UNESCO, WHO), USA governmental or non-governmental bodies, universities and foundations, or the European Economic Commission. The proposals can also focus the bilateral cooperation promoted by China, Cuba, Eastern Bloc and Western European countries, through the cold war lens. Beyond the politics of scientific and technical cooperation in Africa, it is important to identify and understand the dynamics of competition, emulation and collaboration between the cooperation actors, but also internal tensions and evolutions. In turn, it is worth enquiring how local elites perceived scientific and technical cooperation and its impact in the life of local populations. The submissions may contribute to a comparative appraisal of how science and technology were envisioned and applied to solve African problems, or in otherwords, the concepts and practices of African development that scientific and technical cooperation conveyed and materialised. Finally, how do those ideas and experiences resonate in Africa today?