Panellist: ‘Decolonisation and Social Media’ Roundtable, Nordic Africa Days 2018, African Mobilities (September 21, 2018), Uppsala, Sweden.

ABSTRACT: Global academia, and African Studies in particular, is in the midst of a new wave of debates and interventions calling for the decolonisation of academic disciplines, school curricula and university structures. The South African “Rhodes Must Fall” movement was not only one of the trailblazers in this most recent mobilisation against the persistent inequalities and prejudice in African and Africanist higher education, it also demonstrated the power and potential of social media as a platform for social and political mobilisation. This Roundtable considers the escalating calls for the decolonisation of African(ist) academia with particular attention to the roles and potential of social media.

Chair: Patience Mususa

Panellists: Francis Nyamnjoh, Henning Melber, Robtel Neajai Pailey

Participant: 'Where Is Africa Headed? Opportunities and Challenges for 2018', Royal African Society (RAS) High-Level Roundtable (September 12, 2018), London, UK.

Co-presenter: 'Post-party Politics? Local, National and Transnational Dimensions of Liberia's 2017 Elections’, African Studies Association of the United Kingdom (ASAUK) 2018 Conference, Session OS9 on ‘State-making from Below' (September 12, 2018), Birmingham, UK.

Moderator: ‘Representing Migration: Diversifying Voices and Audiences', Theme 7, UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa and the University of Wits’ African Centre for Migration and Society ‘International Conference on Migration: Southern Perspectives on Migration: Addressing Knowledge Production, Policies and Cooperation’, (September 6, 2018), Johannesburg, South Africa.

Speaker: ‘Return, Reintegration and Remigration of African Migrants in ‘Post-Crisis’ Contexts: Lessons for Policy and Practice’, UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa and the University of Wits’ African Centre for Migration and Society ‘International Conference on Migration: Southern Perspectives on Migration: Addressing Knowledge Production, Policies and Cooperation’, Theme 6 on ‘Mobility and Social Transformation’ (September 6, 2018), Johannesburg, South Africa.

ABSTRACT: Crisis, defined for the purpose of this paper as armed conflict, impacts African migrants differently depending on a wide range of factors such as the economic stability and geo-political positioning of the origin or host country, the high-profile (or low-profile) nature of the crisis and resulting external responses, the socio-economic status of migrants, their relationships with non-migrant populations and with the origin or host state, as well as migrants’ “preparedness” and “resource mobilisation” (Cassarino, 2004). African migrants may respond to crises by staying put, returning to their countries of origin or re-migrating elsewhere depending on the opportunity structures available.

Situating ‘post-crisis’ return as part and parcel of the crisis cycle, this paper argues that socio-economic embeddedness in countries of origin is a necessary, though not sufficient, condition for sustainable and successful return of African migrants impacted by crisis in destination countries. It argues that transnational linkages, national, regional, and multilateral policies and practices play a role in facilitating return and reintegration as well as encouraging remigration to countries affected by crises or elsewhere. Lessons are drawn from empirical data collected for the European Union-funded Migrants in Countries in Crisis research component examining crises in Côte d’Ivoire, Libya, and Central African Republic, amongst other case studies.

Presenter: 'Libya Post-2011: The Consequences of Foreign Military Intervention in a Migration Hub', International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) Libya Project, Academia Conference on Promoting Knowledge for Evidence-Based Sustainable Migration Governance in Libya: The Mediterranean Perspective, 1st Discussion Session on 'The Geo-political Context of Migration in Libya and in Its Neighbourhoods' (June 25, 2018), Tunis, Tunisia.

ABSTRACT:   Long before NATO’s military intervention in 2011 leading to the ouster of Muammar Gaddafi, Libya served as a major destination for intra-Africa migration.  In the 1990s, it became a centre of revolutionary zeal and economic growth for sub-Saharan migrants, primarily due to its growing isolation from the West following the Lockerbie bombing over Scotland in 1988. On the one hand, Libya hosted and trained migrant mercenaries from countries such as Burkina Faso, Liberia and Sierra Leone in West Africa, thereby fuelling political crises in these locales and creating spillover migration effects regionally. On the other hand, Libya served as a pole of prosperity for labour migrants from Central African countries such as Chad, thereby creating remittance channels to stem household poverty in these locales. Gadaffi’s pro-Africa political stances (manifested in African guest worker programmes, visa exemptions for African nationals, etc), transformed Libya into a pan-Africanist haven. Desperate to realign with Europe in exchange for sanctions withdrawal in the early 2000s, however, Libya collaborated with Western countries in joint-border control measures to restrict the movement of Africans by subjecting them to harassment, physical assault, and arbitrary detention. This, coupled with post-2011 revolution violence and instability, has fuelled the so-called ‘migration crisis’ across the Mediterranean. 

This presentation will highlight how external military interventions in the internal political affairs of migration hubs such as Libya can create negative unintended consequences for domestic citizens, migrants and their families, regional neighbours, and international actors spearheading intervention efforts. It demonstrates how military interventions in countries of destination can ultimately reap disastrous results, especially if non-regional actors disregard the advice of regional institutions such as the African Union, which advocated for a more political solution to the domestic Libyan crisis. The presentation draws lessons from empirical data collected for the European Union-funded Migrants in Countries in Crisis (MICIC) research component examining crises in Libya, Côte d’Ivoire, and Central African Republic, amongst other case studies.

External Link: https://www.icmpd.org/news-centre/events/calendar-detail/?no_cache=1&tx_calender_pi2%5Bentry%5D=1264

Facilitator and Co-organiser: 'Bridging Innovation and Industry: African Youth Solving Continental Challenges', 53rd African Development Bank Group Annual Meetings (May 21, 2018), Busan, Republic of Korea.

Panellist: 'The Kids Are Alright: Educating for Public Integrity', OECD Global Anti-Corruption and Integrity Forum (March 28, 2018), Paris, France.

Panellist: 'Conversation on Gender Equality at the Bank', African Development Bank Group's International Women's Day Celebration (March 8, 2018), Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.

Workshop Facilitator: ‘Gbagba: A Lesson in Ethics, Integrity and Accountability.’ International Community School of Abidjan (February 2), Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Panellist: 'Donor/Partner Roundtable with Fahamu', Fahamu, Networks for Social Justice 20th Anniversary Celebration (December 8, 2017), Nairobi, Kenya.

Presenter: 'Liberia, Ebola and the Pitfalls of State-Building: Reimagining Domestic and Diasporic Public Authority’, African Studies Association (USA) 60th Annual Meeting, Session X-H-2 on ‘State and Non-State Governance' (November 18, 2017), Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Panellist: 'Making a Difference? Assessing the Legacy of Africa's First Elected Woman President', University of Ottawa Centre for International Policy Studies (CIPS) and Africa Study Group Co-Sponsored Panel (November 15, 2017), Ottawa, Canada.

Guest Lecturer: 'From First Recorded Rigged Election to First Female President in Africa: Liberia’s Democratic Consolidation to Date', Liberia Strategic Analysis (LSA) and Social Impact Learning Event (October 9, 2017), Monrovia, Liberia.

Presenter/Panellist: 'Between Rootedness and Rootlessness: How Sedentarist and Nomadic Metaphysics Simultaneously Challenge and Reinforce (Dual) Citizenship Claims for Liberia.’ SOAS Africa Conference 2017, 'Imagining Africa's Future: Language, Culture, Governance, Development', Panel 1 on 'Creating and Claiming Identities', SOAS, University of London, (July 20, 2017), London, UK.

Presenter: 'Liberia, Ebola and the Pitfalls of State-building: Reimagining Public Authority 'Inside' and 'Outside' the Post-war State', 7th Annual European Conference on African Studies (ECAS), 'Urban Africa - Urban Africans: New Encounters of the Rural and the Urban', Panel P054 on 'Political Representation in Fragile and Transitional States' (June 30, 2017), Basel, Switzerland.

Presenter: 'Return and Reintegration in ‘Post-Crisis’ Contexts', 14th Annual IMISCOE Conference, 'Migration, Diversities and Cities', Panel on 'Migration and Crisis: When Migrants Are Caught in Crises' (June 28, 2017), Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Presenter: 'Birthplace, Bloodline and Beyond: How ‘Liberian Citizenship' Is Currently Constructed in Liberia and Abroad.’ University of Oxford, Department of International Development Workshop on 'Rethinking Everyday Citizenship in Africa', 'Crises and Citizenship' Panel (June 20, 2017), Oxford, UK.

Panellist: 'African Democracy in a Global Context', Open Society European Policy Institute Workshop on ‘Future of Democracy in Africa: Trends in State-Society Relations’ (May 10, 2017), Brussels, Belgium.

Presenter: ‘Liberia, Ebola, and the Pitfalls of State-building: Reimagining Public Authority ‘Inside’ and ‘Outside’ the Post-War State.’ Development Research Seminar, International Institute of Social Studies, Erasmus University (March 30, 2017), The Hague, the Netherlands.

Discussant: 'Transparency and Accountability in West Africa Portfolio Review.' Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) Board Meeting (March 24, 2017), Monrovia, Liberia.

Guest Lecturer: 'Silver Lining or Silver Bullet? Post-War Opportunities and Challenges for Liberian Diasporas in Development.' USAID Liberia, Learning Event (March 22, 2017), Monrovia, Liberia.

Speaker: 'Consular Responses during Crises: Case Studies of Côte d'Ivoire and Central African Republic.' International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) 'Migrants in Countries in Crisis' (MICIC) Capacity Building Seminar--Crisis Preparedness and Consular Contingency Planning (March 16, 2017), Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.

Speaker: 'Writing at the Crossroads: Writing across Boundaries.' London Book Fair Seminar/Panel (March 14, 2017), London UK. 

Panellist: Wallah je te jure. Documentary Screening and Post-screening Discussion, Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) (March 13, 2017), London, UK.