CODESRIA Bulletin, Nos 1 & 2, 2012 Page 1 Editorial ODESRIA entered the year 2012 with a new Diaspora. Rabat also confirmed a trend that began earlier Executive Committee, a new President and a on; the General Assembly is becoming a great scientific Cnew Vice President, all of whom were elected attraction for scholars around the world. The debates on during the 13th General Assembly of the Council held in climate change, global knowledge divides, higher December 2011 in Rabat, Morocco. The new President education leadership, the "Arab Spring" / "African is Professor Fatima Harrak of the Institute of African Awakening", China-Africa relations, land grabbing, the Studies, Mohammad V Souissi University in Rabat, and future of multilateralism, the meaning of pan Africanism the Vice-President is Prof. Dzodzi Tshikata of the today, international migrations, and other major issues University of Ghana, Legon. The full list of members of were extremely rich, as can be seen in the summary of the new Executive Committee follows this editorial. the report of the General Assembly published in this issue As the 13th President of CODESRIA, Prof. Harrak took of the Bulletin. The full report will also soon be published. over from Prof. Sam Moyo of the Africa Institute of Most of the 200 or so papers presented at the Assembly Agrarian Studies in Harare. CODESRIA, with the are already on the CODESRIA website, and revised guidance of the Executive Committee, achieved quite a versions will be published in special issues of CODESRIA lot, including the launching of new research and policy journals and in the Book Series, as a way of extending dialogue initiatives, the publication of many good books the debates that started in Rabat to the wider scholarly and the launching of a new journal of social science community. In an attempt to enable the community to research methodologies, the adoption of new internal follow the debates in Rabat live through the internet, the regulations, the revamping of the CODESRIA website plenary sessions were actually all streamed, and many and, indeed, almost the entire CODESRIA people were able to follow the discussions. Video communications system, making effective use of the new recordings of the keynote lectures and some of the social media to the extent of being ranked in the 2011 roundtables are being re-formatted for uploading on the Go To Global Think Tanks Report of the Think Tanks website. and Civil Societies Program of the University of In this issue of the CODESRIA Bulletin, we publish two Pennsylvania (USA) among the top 30 think tanks in the of the papers that were presented during the General world "with the best use of the internet or social media to Assembly; addressing issues such as higher education, disseminate information and knowledge and engage the the knowledge systems and the question of how prepared public". In the same report, CODESRIA also featured Africa is to face the challenges of the second decade of among "the top 30 international development think tanks this century, and the African Diaspora (Africa’s Sixth in the world". Region). The new Executive Committee is already at work, This issue also carries the reports from the conferences managing an evaluation of CODESRIA, and a Strategic of CODESRIA Journal Editors and the Deans of the Planning process, while continuing to perform its normal Faculties of Social Sciences and Humanities of African oversight and leadership roles. Although the Council still universities, both of which were held in Rabat on the has many challenges to overcome, the good news is that back of the General Assembly. The keynote address at the results of the evaluation are positive. the editors’ conference, entitled "Equitable Higher The theme of the scientific conference of the 13th General Education, Inclusive Development and the Commercial Assembly was "Africa and the Challenges of the 21st Academic Publishing Industry", was delivered by Century". The General Assembly brought together about Professor Adam Habib of the University of Johannesburg. 600 people, mostly scholars from the continent and its He described the current journal industry, involving the CODESRIA Bulletin, Nos 1 & 2, 2012 Page 2 multinationals of the journal publishing industry, as a bi- and resources at the expense of teaching and research, zarre one ‘in which the authors of journal articles are the primary responsibilities of universities. The missing paid by the public purse, those that painstakingly review link is the ability of African young researchers to theorise the quality of the product are also paid by the public and define Africa’s problems, a very possible task if these purse, and then the product is sold by a private European skills can be inculcated into the new and upcoming or North American company back to public institutions doctoral students. In addition to discussing this topic, at a huge profit…’ The effect of this is that the not-so- the Deans also addressed three other issues: (i) "African well-endowed universities ‘do not have access to a quality Universities and Globalization"; (ii) "African Universities academic journal base which is an absolute necessity for and the Implementation of the BMD Reform" and; (iii) quality higher education…’ This is part of the strategic “Rethinking Humanities and Social Sciences in a Global issues the African academy needs to address; otherwise, Higher Education Space”. how are we going to develop a high quality education Featuring also in this edition are announcements of new system that is capable of producing high profile scholars activities and scientific reports, including that of the 2011 and professionals needed for the continents development Gender Symposium, held in Cairo 1st to 3rd November, and building a new generation of scholars to sustain our 2011, written by Brahim El Morchid. The theme of the academic institutions? In his address (the text of which symposium was "Gender and Media in Africa". Among was published in issue 3&4, 2011 of CODESRIA other issues, this forum emphasises the role of women as Bulletin), Prof. Habib also explains how countries like agents of change in the economic, political and social Brazil and South Africa are trying to address this global struggle and development of African states; and challenge about which even some of the universities of discourages social structures that militate against women the North that have huge endowments are beginning to empowerment and recognition. Some of the major issues express serious concern. discussed included how to discourage traditional The Deans’ Conference was organized around the theme stereotypes and reductionist representations of women "The Place of the African University in the Building of a in the media in favour of empowerment, positive Global Higher Education Space". The keynote address, projection and greater recognition of women, as well as delivered by Professor Mahmood Mamdani, decried the diversification of gender roles. prevailing ‘culture of consultancy’ that was taking space Ebrima Sall Executive Secretary Alex Bangirana Head, Publications CODESRIA Bulletin, Nos 1 & 2, 2012 Page 3 New Executive Committee Members President of CODESRIA Vice-President of CODESRIA Fatima Harrak is a Historian and Dzodzi Tsikata is the Director of Political Scientist. She is a the Centre for Gender Studies and Research Scholar at the Institute Advocacy (CEGENSA) and an of African Studies, Mohamed V Associate Professor at the Institute Soussi University, Morocco. of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), University of Ghana. Fatima Harrak Dzodzi Tsikata Cláudio Alves Furtado is a Jessie Kabwila is the Head of the Sociologist. He is an Associate English Department, Chancellor Professor at the University of College, University of Malawi. Cape Verde. He is also a visiting She is a committed academic professor of African studies at the unionist, serving as the Acting Federal University of Bahia, Brazil. President of the Chancellor College Academic Staff Union (CCASU). Claudio Alves Jessie Kabwila- Furtado Kapasula Puleng LenkaBula is a Senior Etanislas Ngodi is a Lecturer and Lecturer in the Department of Researcher at Marien Ngouabi Systematic Theology and University, Democratic Republic of Theological Ethics at the Univer- Congo. sity of South Africa. Puleng LenkaBula Etanislas Ngodi F.E.M.K. Senkoro is currently an Mohamed Helmy El Sharawy is Associate Professor, and Head of currently the Vice President at the the Centre for Literature and Arab and African Research African Oral Traditions at the Center in Cairo, Egypt, and was Institute of Kiswahili Studies, Uni- its Director from 1987 to 2010. versity of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Mohamed Helmy F.E.M.K. Senkoro El Sharawy Kenneth Inyani Simala is an Emmanuel Yenshu Vubo is a Associate Professor of Language Professor of Sociology and and Cultural Linguistics at Demography at the University of Masinde Muliro University of Buea, Cameroon. Science and Technology (MMUST), Kenya. Kenneth Emmanuel Inyani Simala Yenshu Vuboh CODESRIA Bulletin, Nos 1 & 2, 2012 Page 4 Africa and the Challenges of the 21st Century 13th CODESRIA General Assembly, 5 – 9 December 2011, Rabat, Morocco Introduction creation of the OAU/AU) and the endnote Brahim El Morchid The Council for the Development of Social lecture during which Professor Jayati Gosh University Cadi Ayyad, Marrakech Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) succintly spelt out the state of the global Abderrahmane Ngaïdé held its 13th General Assembly on 5 - 9 economy and the ways out of the global Cheikh Anta Diop University December 2011 in Rabat, Morocco. Held crisis for, not only Western countries, but Abdon Sofonnou every three years, the General Assembly is also for those who seem to be the most CODESRIA one of the most important scientific events affected. on the African continent. More than 600 The opening ceremony was chaired by His participants from various disciplines and from about 30 African Excellency Nizar Baraka, Deputy Minister of Economic and countries took part in the 2011 edition, during which partners General Affairs of the Kingdom of Morocco, and attended by and donors of the Council were also present.