Academic Freedom and the Problems of Patriotism and Social Responsibility in Post-colonial Africa

This article interrogates the meaning of academic freedom in African universities after the attainment of political independence. It explores the nuances of the concept of academic freedom and traces its appropriation in African contexts. The article contends that African scholars operate in challenging political environments due to the quest by political leaders to dabble in philosophy. African ‘philosopher kings’ have sought to articulate grand visions and narratives of development and they brook no dissent in this ‘sacred quest’. As a result, African academics are generally expected to tow the line and endorse the grandiose philosophies articulated by the ambitious presidents. We argue that this is dangerous and results in loss of academic freedom. The article concludes by emphasising that African intellectuals can make more effective contributions to the nations by refusing to be co-opted and remaining faithful to the tenets of academic freedom

A Case for Investing in HIV-Sensitive Social Services for Vulnerable Children in Nigeria

HIV and AIDS are reported to be one of the leading causes of death in Nigeria, behind other child-related death illnesses – influenza and pneumonia (CDC, 2013). The presence of HIV and AIDS in a family, including related orhpanhood because of the disease has a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of children. It also dramatically impacts the long-term implications and costs to society. However, there remains a notable disparity between the contributions made by different actors – including all levels of the Nigerian government, international donors, private organizations and civil society. A desk review was conducted to examine the current gaps in investment related to care and treatment for children living with or affected by HIV. Findings reveal that foreign funding declined from 82 – 71% for financing of HIV related programming and interventions. While there seems to be some progress compared to increased contributions to orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) programming from domestic sources (e.g., government and private sector), this comes at the same time when there is a decline in foreign donor support towards the issue. Conversely, private sector contributions to OVC issues remain an untapped resource in Nigeria. Therefore, there is a need for an investment case to clear articulate and advocate for increased financial support for an HIV sensitive social service system that can adequately address and respond to the needs of vulnerable children. Keywords: Investment case, OVC financing, cost of inaction, OVC programing, Nigeri

Narratives of difference and sameness

As an Afrikaner man doing research on ubuntu, what are the possibilities for meaningful research? In this article, some aspects of the difficulties and possibilities that may be encountered in such a research programme will be explored. Within a postmodern worldview, and framed within postfoundational practical theology, social-constructionism, a narrative hermeneutic metaphor and autoethnography will be used as tools to explore some difficulties and possibilities of such a research undertaking.This article was written as part of the research for a MTh degree that was done under supervision of Prof Julian C. Muller, Department of Practical Theology, University of Pretoria, South Africa.http://www.ve.org.za/am201

Addiction in the Light of African Values: Undermining Vitality and Community

In this article I address the question of what makes addiction morally problematic, and seek to answer it by drawing on values salient in the sub-Saharan African philosophical tradition. Specifically, I appeal to life-force and communal relationship, each of which African philosophers have at times advanced as a foundational value, and spell out how addiction, or at least salient instances of it, could be viewed as unethical for flouting them. I do not seek to defend either vitality or community as the best explanation of when and why addiction is immoral, instead arguing that each of these characteristically African values grounds an independent and plausible account of that. I conclude that both vitalism and communalism merit consideration as rivals to accounts that Western ethicists would typically make, according to which addiction is immoral insofar as it degrades rationality or autonomy, as per Kantianism, or causes pain or dissatisfaction, à la utilitarianism

“An assessment of strategy implementation in Zimbabwe’s Public Sector”: an empirical study of the Ministry of Health and Child Care 2009-2015.

The practice of strategy implementation has been important especially to public sector organizations in Zimbabwe as they complement government national policies and for key survival for government Ministries. Though a lot has been written about strategy implementation focusing on other organizations locally, regional, and international quite a few has been looked at about strategy implementation in Zimbabwe public sector. In this case this has made the researcher to research about strategy implementation using the National Health Strategy 2009-2013 of the Ministry of Health and Child Care looking on the challenges faced in strategy implementation as the main aim of the study. Literature on strategy and strategy implementation was analysed critically and gaps were also found in reviewing what other scholars brought forward concerning the study. The research methodology was a case study looking at the Ministry of Health where the researcher did his work related learning in 2015 were the researcher revealed that the Ministry have crafted over hundred strategies but not all of them were successfully implemented. The case study gave an in-depth assessment of answering the “why” questions associated with the phenomena, in this sense the research was both explanative and explorative. The research highlighted the following notable results from which conclusions were drawn; that strategy implementation fails due to lack of resources human and financial, lack of motivation and reward systems, lack of communication, there is need for training and leadership challenges and also change in government policies proved to affect strategy implementation. The results demonstrate that leadership is by far the most important factor influencing successful implementation strategy in the service sector

African Bioethics: An Explanatory Discourse

No Abstract Available Journal for the Study of Religion Vol.18(1) 2005: 16-3

Academic Freedom Discourse in Post-Colonial Africa: A Quest for Transformation and Appropriation of Relevant Knowledge in Higher Education

This article argues that in post-apartheid South Africa, the discourse on academic freedom is conjoined with the African experiences of apartheid and colonialism. The majority of black academics see academic freedom as an opportunity for the total emancipation of the African university from the vestiges of colonialism and apartheid. A symbiotic relationship exists between colonialism and Eurocentric knowledge. The main argument is that it is imperative that transformation is on the basis of the quality of knowledge that is disseminated at African universities. However, it is also argued that those who are against transformation at African universities have appealed to academic freedom to imply that their inherited colonial privileges should never be tampered with. Africa Insight Vol. 38 (2) 2008: pp. 101-11

The theory of self-interest in modern economic discourse: a critical study in the light of African humanism and process philosophical anthropology.

Doctoral Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg.Modern economic theory of self-interest alleges that in their economic relations people always behave in a way that maximises their utility. The idea whether human beings were solely self-interested has a long history as it can be seen from the writings of Greek philosophers and the Church fathers. Among Greek philosophers there were those who argued that human beings were naturally self-interested (Aristotle) and those who maintained that human beings were communal by nature (Plato, Stoics and the Pythagoreans). The later position was adopted by the Church fathers as they condemned self-interest as the sin of avarice and greed. The justification of self-interest in human and political activities was part and parcel of the economic and political early modernists, as it can be seen in the works of Mandeville, Hobbes, Hume and Adam Smith. In the writings of these thinkers, the flourishing of wealth depended on individual freedom to pursue their self-interests. In this regard, self interest became the sole source of motivation in the behaviour of homo economicus. A persistent motif in late modern economic discourse on self-interest is based on the idea that people think and act on the basis of that which is to their self-interest. It is mainly for this reason that late modern economic thinkers maintain that society would prosper when people are left alone to pursue their self-interests. Late modern economic theory of utility maximisation alleges that individuals act only after calculating costs and benefits. The argument of this thesis, based on the commonalities between African humanism and process philosophical anthropology, is that self-interest is antithetical to communal life as advocated in the ethic of Ubuntu. One who acts solely on the basis of maximising his or her utility would inevitably deprive others of a humane existence. A holistic metaphysical outlook based on the relatedness and interrelatedness of everything that exists as we find it in African humanism and process philosophical anthropology implies that the individual exists in internal relations with everything else. We should go beyond self interest by giving primacy to a holistic ethic.Quality of scanned pdf has been compromised owing to poor condition of original document

Indigenous knowledge systems discourse and inclusionality: an Afro-centric quest for recognition in a globalised world

The main goal of this essay is to argue that in a multicultural and globalised world, the indigenisation of knowledge production has to be pursued in a way that demonstrates an element of inclusivity. To achieve this goal this article’s structure has three foci. Firstly, it is argued that the indigenisation of knowledge must be pursued under the presumption of a recognition that all knowledge is cultural or context specific to some degree. As such, the multicultural nature and plurality of knowledge systems formations should be acknowledged, as well as the fact that all knowledge production includes an aspect of the indigenisation of knowledge. Secondly, against this broader background, the argument for the indigenisation of knowledge in Africa goes hand-in-hand with the promotion of the intellectualisation of knowledge that is often regarded by Western scholarship as ‘primitive’, and thus redundant, in the face of modernity. This, however, is not only a universal for the production of all knowledge(s), but also foundational to all knowledge development, and should be recognised as such. Finally, given the plurality of knowledge formations, and the African celebration and development of its own knowledge formations, the quest for the indigenisation and intellectualisation of knowledge in African context, should be seen as a quest for the inclusionary appreciation of a multiplicity of global knowledges, whereby all knowledge is understood as context specific to some degree, and contributing to both local and general human wellbeing. This latter perspective implies a deliberately ethical stance, to the effect that in a globalised and multicultural world, no  knowledge system should be privileged as superior to any other knowledge system, and none, regarded as inferior.Keywords: Indigenisation, knowledge, ethnicity, recognition, Africa, ethics, context, anthropology, recognition, multiculturalism, globalisation, inclusionnalit