Senegal: Workshop on Political Participation in Africa

Please read to the end of the article and apply to the workshop organisers by 20th May 2008 with the documents requested. Do NOT send applications to Sociolingo.

The American Political Science Association (APSA) and the Council for
the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) are
pleased to announce the holding of a workshop on Political
Participation in Africa. The workshop will be held on 6-27 July 2008
at the West African Research Center (WARC) in Dakar, Senegal. The
organizers will cover all the costs of participation (travel,
lodging, meals, stipend) of the 20-25 applicants who will be selected
to join this threeweek workshop. The working language is French
though some English materials may be used.

The workshop leaders are Profs. Leonard Wantchekon (New York
University, Department of Politics, USA), Augustin Loada (Faculté de
Droit et de Science Politique de l’Université de Ouagadougou, Burkina
Faso), Alioune Badara Diop (Unité d’Enseignement et de Recherches de
Sciences Juridiques et Politiques de l’Université Gaston Berger,
St.-Louis, Senegal), and Catherine Boone (University of Texas at
Austin, Department of Political Science, USA).

PARTICIPANTS
The seminar is targeted at young university faculty in the social
sciences, and doctoral-level graduate students who hope to go into
teaching positions in African universities. All Fellows should be
engaged actively in an empirical research project in politics,
political sociology, political anthropology, public law, development
studies, or a related area. Fellows should be working on a
dissertation chapter, conference paper, book chapter, or article that
can be developed into an articlelength publication. As workshop
participants, the Fellows will present their on-going research
projects to the group in order to fuel discussion and generate new
ideas for framing and developing their future research projects.

THEMES
Political participation is broadly defined as a set of activities
undertaken by citizens to affect the making of governments as well as
public policies. It includes turnout and voting in elections,
lobbying, joining political parties and unions, petitioning, and
participating in street demonstrations. A good understanding of
patterns of political participation is central to the study of
democracy and governance in Africa.
We are looking for Workshop Fellows who are interested in a range of
issues linked to political participation, including the dynamics of
voting and elections, the organization and workings of political
parties, and the effect of political participation on substantive
policy outcomes (eg. health and education policies, land law,
economic and fiscal policies). We are especially interested in
1. Regional and urban-rural differences in political participation:
what explains differences in political dynamics, including in turnout
and voting, across regions and types of elections?
2. Economic interests, ethnic/religious identities and political
participation: how do economic conditions and membership in ethnic
and religious groups affect civic engagement?
3. Institutions and political participation: how do state structure
and electoral rules affect electoral mobilization and voting?
4. Political participation and democratic governance: does increased
citizen involvement improve the ability of governments to provide
public goods, or change clientelist practices?
The workshop will devote systematic attention to issues of research
design and strategies of data-gathering. Over the course of the
workshop, each Fellow will present a piece of original scholarship to
the group. This can be a research paper, conference paper,
dissertation chapter, or other piece of written work that is
approximately 20-30 pages in length. The format will include
break-out groups centered on particular themes, and time for
participants to revise and develop their research papers. One goal of
the workshop is to get a critical mass of publishable papers that can
be collected into an edited volume on Political Participation in
Africa.

APPLICATIONS
Applications will be accepted in French. Applications should include:
1. A Letter of Application that clearly states the applicant’s
institutional affiliation, position and all relevant contact
information for the
2. A detailed, recent CV of the applicant
3. a 500-word description of the applicant’s current research
interests, how these relate to the theme of political participation,
the empirical focus of the applicant’s research, and the current
status of the applicant’s research project.
4. a 10-15 page written document that is part of the applicant’s
on-going research project. This can be a work-inprogress that is part
of a paper, article, or chapter. The written text should tell the
reader about the empirical as well as the theoretical/conceptual
interests of the author.
5. two letters of reference. If the applicant is a graduate student,
one letter should be a letter of introduction from the applicant’s
supervising professor.

Applications for participation in the workshop as a Fellow should be
sent to CODESRIA, by postal service or by 20 May, 2008. The list of
participants will be announced on 29 May, 2008. All queries and
applications will be sent to the following address:

WORKSHOP ON POLITICAL PARTICIPATION
CODESRIA
P.O. Box. 3304, CP 18524
Avenue Cheikh Anta Diop X Canal 4
Dakar, Senegal
Tel : +221 33 825 98 22/23
Fax : +221 33 824 12 89
Email : political.participation@codesria.sn
Website : www.codesria.org or
www.apsanet.org/africaworkshops
2008 Research Workshop
Theme: Political Participation in Africa
Dates: 6-27 July, 2008-Venue: Dakar, Senegal
Call for Application

__________

From: Jean-Pierre DIOUF <<mailto:jean.diouf@codesria.sn>jean.diouf@codesria.sn>
Date: 14 avr. 2008 16:34

CODESRIA

Atelier de recherche
Thème: Participation politique en Afrique
Date : 6-27 juillet 2008 - Lieu : Dakar, Sénégal

Gambia: Workshop on rural finance opens in Banjul

Source: APA

Workshop on rural finance opens in Banjul

APA-Banjul (The Gambia) A three-day sub-regional workshop on the rural finance challenges facing Africa was opened in Banjul on Monday by the Central Bank of the Gambia governor Momodou Bamba Saho. Saho told the participants drawn from the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana and Nigeria, that it was important to discuss and share experiences about “new initiatives for the development of sustainable micro-finance operations in the sub-region and beyond.\” He noted that micro-finance is widely recognized as one of the tools in the fight against poverty as it “can empower poor people in improving their livelihood.” He said limited access to finance lowers welfare and hinders poverty reduction and the emergence of an economically active middle class. “More fundamentally, inadequate financial services constraints economic growth,” he said. He said the Gambia is typical of most developing countries where the majority is poor and predominantly engaged in primary production. Saho said the largest of this production sector “does not have access to even basic payment services or savings accounts. ” He said this mass of small and informal enterprises also lack access to credit which hinder their growth and development. “As stakeholders of the financial sector, I believe it is our collective goal in ensuring a stable and viable finance system in our various countries,” he said.

SC/pm/APA 2008-04-01

Summer Institute: Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies of Slavery 2008

Institut Virtuel des Hautes Études sur les Esclavages et les

Traites / Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies of Slavery

and the Slave Trade

Summer Institute

Aix-en-Provence, August 23-29 2008

« Blacks or Negroes », « Africans or Hyphenated Afro’s », « Slave

descendants or Immigrants » :  Deconstructing the categories of

designation and questioning the representations of identity in the past

and present Agenda The research and teaching programme of the Virtual

Institute aims at analyzing the ways that the categories associated with

somatic differences, often perceived and qualified as “racial,” have

affected our understanding of the historical migration of enslaved

Africans, the racialist the legacy of slavery, and the persistence of

slavery today.

We will study

- the historical construction of the concept of « race » in relation to

the slavery of Africans in the Americas but also to the practices of

identification and designation in Africa

- the ways that the different experiences of slavery have been racialized

since Antiquity until the present

- the consequences and the contemporary political, cultural and social

legacies of these constructions of the past in European, African, Asiatic

and American societies

The programme will explore the different ways “Africans” and “Blacks”

perceived and named themselves in different situations. Today it is

accepted that the way somatic differences have been understood has varied

over time. While perceptions of somatic differences have changed, we want

to explore how such perceptions have been used to define communities and

determine Otherness.” Among those who have at times been perceived as

“black” we find not only Africans but people from southern Asia, and in

some instances that even Irish have been linked with “blacks” in Barbados

and elsewhere and similarly even Polish have been so designated in Haiti.

The programme will consider what these perceptions can tell us about the

construction of social destinations that have been called “racial.”  We

will emphasize the multiple signs and markers of “chromatic”, “ethnic”,

national, religious and geographic identities that have been crucial in

the process of such attempts at categorization.

These questions address the identities of populations said to be “mixed”,

including “mixed-blood”, “mulattos”, “free of color” and “creoles”. The

terms and notions of “African American”, “afro-descendants”, “slave

descendants” or other identities as “negro”, “black”, “colored” and

similar terms will be examined by taking into consideration the history of

the transatlantic slavery and emancipation. We will explore contemporary

legacies that are sometimes assigned to “immigrants” in Europe and

elsewhere.

The programme aims also at understanding how, why and when “racial”

categories became dominant in Europe and the Americas and the differences

and similarities of such designations in Asia and in the rest of the

world. It seeks to understand why and when the “racial”

denominations were reappropriated by some cultural, literary and political

movements.

Registration

The Summer University of  IVHEET is open to researchers, professors and

graduate students of Africa, Europe, North America and Latin America, as

well as teachers of secondary and primary schools in selected instances.

The registration fee for each participant is 90 euros (individual) and 150

euros (institutional). Some grants covering the living expenses and

transportation can be granted by the partner institutions.

Selection process

The selection of the student candidates will be done according to the

criteria of each partner institution.

Students must submit an electronic application including a research

project, a curriculum vitae, a letter of recommendation of the research

supervisor. The electronic applications must be sent to Ana Lucia Araujo

analucia.araujo@gmail.com

Teaching candidates must submit an application including a cover letter, a

curriculum vitae and a document testifying to professional activity. The

applications must be sent to <ericmesnard@wanadoo.fr > Practical

information The activities of the Summer university will take place at :

1. Maison Méditerranéenne des Sciences de l’Homme(MMSH),

http://www.mmsh.univ-aix.fr/ 2. Archives nationales d’Outre-Mer (ANOM),

http://www.archivesnationales.culture.gouv.fr/caom/

Accomodation and meals :

Thanks to an agreement with CROUS (Centre Régional des Œuvres

Universitaires et Scolaires de l’Académie d’Aix-Marseille), all

participants will have individual rooms with bathrooms. CROUS also will

provide meals http://www.crous-aix-marseille.com.fr/upload/jppavwudsc.pdf

Useful addresses :

About Aix-en-Provence: http://www.aixenprovencetourism.com/

  Partner Institutions:

Institut Interdisciplinaire Virtuel des Hautes Études sur les Esclavages

et les Traites IVHEET - http://peresclave.over-blog.com/

Centre International de Recherches sur les Esclavages : Acteurs, systèmes,

représentations http://www.esclavages.cnrs.fr/

Le Programme d’Excellence Régionale de l’AUF : Les esclavages et les

traites : communautés, frontières et identités piloté par l’Université

Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar http://tekrur-ucad.refer.sn/

Harriet Tubman Institute for Research on the Global Migrations of African

Peoples, Université York, Toronto, Canada http://www.yorku.ca/tubman

Chaire de recherche du Canada en Histoire Comparée de la Mémoire,

Université Laval, Québec, Canada

http://www.celat.ulaval.ca/histoire.memoire

Contacts:

Issiaka.Mande@univ-paris-diderot.fr

drogers@netcourrier.com, dominique.rogers@wanadoo.fr

m.cottias@wanadoo.fr

Analucia.araujo@gmail.com

“Tekrur” <tekrur@refer.sn>

2nd Workshop on Endangered Archives - Canada

 Please go to the workshop website and apply, do NOT send applications to Sociolingo.

Source: York University, Canada

2nd Workshop on Endangered Archives

Harriet Tubman Institute, York University, Canada

Saturday, April 19, 2008

With the explosive use of computers in recent decades, a

growing number of researchers have been involved in the

preservation of endangered archival documents through

digital means. Accordingly, there are researchers funded by

various significant bodies currently working in Algeria,

Jamaica, Brazil, Cuba, Nigeria, and other parts of the

world.  The 2nd Workshop on Endangered Archives will bring

together such researchers and other experts, active in the

preservation of endangered documents to discuss their works

and findings.  The goal of the one-day workshop is to

promote a discussion of ideas that will help clarify

relevant procedures such as “best practices” and technical

details. The Workshop will also provide a venue for

participants to discuss several issues that will enable

aspiring and active researchers to produce best results such

as digital protocol, grant applications, and project

management.

The workshop will be held in 305 Founders College, York

University.

10:00-10:15 Welcome Remarks: Paul E. Lovejoy, Director,

Harriet Tubman Institute, York University, Canada

10:15-11:15 Session 1: Preparing Inventories with Oscar

Grandío Moragúez

11:15-11:30 Coffee Break

11:30-12:30 Session II: Technical Problems in the Field with

Mohammed B. Salau

12:30-1:30 LUNCH

1:30-2:15 Session III: Technological Equipment with Yacine

Daddi-Addoun and Nadine Hunt

2:15-3:15 Session IV: Post-digitization with Carlos Liberato

3:15-3:30 Coffee Break

3:30-4:15 Session V: Post pilot project

4:15-5:00 Session VI:  Discussion on holding a

meeting/workshop at the Tubman Institute to discuss

political implications of digitization projects and funding.

The meeting/workshop would include digitization award

holders and official person of some archives in Algeria,

Brazil, Cuba, Jamaica, Nigeria, and other countries. If

agreed, a committee will be created to organize such a

meeting/workshop.

5:00-5:30: Rump Session/Discussion on new grant applications

and closing remarks

7:00: Dinner Party, T. B. A

In order to participate in this workshop, potential

presenters should send an abstract (maximum 200 words) to

Nadine Hunt nhunt@yorku.ca before 1 April 2008. A Program

Committee will review submitted abstracts. The review of the

Committee will be used for identifying potential papers for

workshop presentation, and for both journal and online

publications.

Workshop Program Committee:

Paul E. Lovejoy (chair), York University

Yacine Daddi-Addoun, York University

Oscar Grandío Moragúez, York University

Nadine Hunt, York University

Carlos Liberato, York University

Mohammed B. Salau, University of Mississippi

For additional information, visit:

http://www.yorku.ca/tubman/ConferencesWorkshops/Conferences/EndangeredArchivesWorkshop/index.html

–

www.yorku.ca/tubman

Free resource: the best free online courses

Source: Development Gateway

Education Portal Lists Universities With the Best Free Online Courses

No tuition money? No problem! There are many top universities that offer free courses online. This list ranks several of the best free university courses available for people who want to enhance their personal knowledge or advance in their current field. The site also features multiple videos and articles about various career paths and the specifics of choosing any number of jobs to pursue. Browse hundreds of original, fact-filled articles to help you make an educated career path decision. The most complete glossary of degree programs on the web. Browse over 2,500 articles about nearly every type of degree, course, and career education program in the United States. Not all of the programs are free, but the resources to identify the field you might like are free resources.

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Uganda & Kenya: short course on Participatory Planning Monitoring and Evaluation

Source: Development Gateway

IIRRs short course on Participatory Planning Monitoring and Evaluation

The International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) is now accepting applications for the Participatory Planning Monitoring and Evaluation course.

• Uganda: 5-16 MAY 2008
• South Sudan: 9-14 JUNE 2008
• Kenya: 17-28 NOVEMBER 2008

Our theme is ‘capacity building for poverty reduction’.

IIRR empowers the rural poor and strengthens local institutions to eradicate poverty. The PPM & E course is useful for all development workers, especially for PPM & E and Management Information System officers, program and project managers, CBO and NGO leaders.

After the training, participants will be able to:

1. Explain and apply concepts related to planning, monitoring and evaluation
2. Link planning, monitoring, evaluation to learning and accountability
3. Plan and conduct impact monitoring and evaluation
4. Adapt and apply various participatory planning, monitoring and evaluation tools and method
5. Design simple monitoring and evaluation systems for projects, programs and organisations
6. Mainstream gender in PPM & E tools, analysis and processes
7. Promote a culture of efficiency, inclusion, accountability and sustainability among development actors.

To register, please send an e-mail to training@iirr-africa.org to receive an application form and more details. Register today, spaces are limited.

Nigeria: African University of Science and Technology opens July 2008

Source: Lady Brille via Timbuktu Chronicles

Mark your calendars for July 2008 when in the state of Abuja, capital of Nigeria, West Africa, the doors open to admit the first set of students for the African University of Science and Technology [AUST]. “The African University of Science and Technology in Abuja (AUST – Abuja) was established by the Nelson Mandela Institution (NMI) in 2007 as the first of a Pan-African Network of Institutes of Science and Technology and Centers of Excellence located across the continent…it intends to become a world class research oriented institution whose final objectives are to train and develop the next generation of African Scientists and Engineers and impact profoundly the continent’s development through science and technology applications.

Read the full article 

Knowledge Management Capacity for African Research Institutes and Networks: Western Africa Workshop

Knowledge Management Capacity for African Research Institutes and Networks: Western Africa Workshop

As a follow-up to the “Knowledge Sharing for Development: Africa Regional Program Workshop” that was held in Cairo in February 2005, and the workshops on Knowledge Management Capacity held successively in Kampala, June 2006, and South Africa, November 2006, the World Bank Institute in cooperation with the Global Development Network (GDN) will be organizing the 3rd in its series of sub-regional workshops across Sub-Saharan Africa in cooperation with the Institute of Economic and Social Policies/Centre d’analyse des Politiques Economiques et Sociales (CAPES). These workshops are aimed at strengthening the operations of African research institutes and networks by exposing them to knowledge management concepts, tools and approaches, and helping them to develop Action Plans to enhance their organizational capacity. Read more>>

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Smoke And Mirrors in Africa - Washington May 3rd

Source: Africa Action

“Smoke And Mirrors in Africa” Discussion
Event time: 6:45 to 8:45 p.m. May 3rdRecent popular new reports about the response of Zimbabwe’s ruling party ZANU PF and Robert Mugabe against political opposition have sparked condemnation from both the U.S. government and many non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which are often at odds.

However, little attention is being given by either of these to attacks on mass demonstrations in Guinea, West Africa by the ruling PUP party of Lansana Conté. The situations in both these African nations warrant a closer examination to uncover what more there is than meets the eye.

This event features a dialogue comparing the current events in these nations and foreign policies of Western nations and NGO’s toward both Zimbabwe and Guinea to examine what lessons they reveal on the state of Africa today.

Presenters include Netfa Freeman, director of the Social Action and Leadership School for Activists (SALSA) and Banbose Shango of A-APRP-GC (Guinea, Conakry).

Institute for Policy Studies, 1112 16th Street, NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC USA
Contact: info@hotsalsa.org (202) 234-9382
http://www.hotsalsa.org/index.php?view=calendar

Research seminar on higher education challenges in Africa

 

“The Contribution of Higher Education to National Education Systems: Current Challenges for Africa” is the theme of a seminar organized by the UNESCO Forum on Higher Education, Research and Knowledge from 22 to 24 March in Ghana, in cooperation with the Association of African Universities, the University of Ghana and the UNESCO Office in Accra.

The seminar is an opportunity for the Forum’s Regional Scientific Committee for Africa to examine the links between higher education and other parts of education systems, determine if they are effective and if they are not, how they can be improved.

Eighteen speakers from 13 countries in the region will address the following themes: teacher training, non-formal education, continuing education and distance learning, technical and vocational education and research in education. Among the issues to be discussed are: How do higher education establishments deal with the needs of teacher training? Do they work closely with NGOs to promote non-formal education? How can educational objectives be met in rural areas where resources are limited?

In Africa, higher education plays a key role in attaining the Millennium Development Goals and Education for All. It was in this context that the UNESCO Forum on Higher Education, Research and Knowledge* was established. Its aim is to reflect on the critical issues in education and to create networks and partnerships between different groups. The Forum has established five Regional Scientific Committees - one for each region of the world - whose mission is to conceptualize areas of research, facilitate the gathering of data and identify research gaps. The findings are examined at regional and global meetings by researchers, experts and those responsible for drawing up education policy. These activities help to highlight the challenges facing institutions and countries.

*****

* www.unesco.org/education/en/higher/forum

–>

• Author(s):Media Advisory No.2007-15
• Source:UNESCOPRESS
• 22-03-2007

Sue Williams, Press Relations Section, Tel + 33 (0) 1 45 68 17 06
s.williams@unesco.org

Course: Training of Trainers

Training of Trainers

Dates: 11 April 2007 - 13 April 2007 Location: London, UK
Course fee: £450.00
Number of days: 3
Description:
This course equips you with enough skills, tools, and creative techniques to deliver a training event in a way that makes learning enjoyable and effective. You will be able to run an interactive training session receiving useful feedback!

Objectives:
• Review theory and models of learning and development
• Consider practical steps of the training cycle
• Use appropriate learning techniques and participative tools
• Explore practical ways to evaluate and review learning
• Develop reflective practice

Download the word application form

See more courses

African course: Information and Communications Technology for Development

 Please go to INTRAC for more information and queries about this course

NEW! Information and Communications Technology for Development

Dates: 23 May 2007 - 25 May 2007 Location: London, UK
Course fee: £450.00

The aim of this 3-day course is to familiarise development practitioners with principles, approaches and recognised good practice in the application of ICTs in different sectors, such as health, education, livelihoods or governance. The course is structured to provide an opportunity for participants to reflect on their own situations, consider how ICTs might be integrated into programmes and organisational development, and to assess how an organisation might take these ideas forward. By the end of the course, participants will have knowledge of: • The implications of using ICTs as an integral part of development programmes • The range of Information and Communication Technologies that can be used in development programmes • The major approaches to and debates around the use of ICTs in development • Different ways that NGOs, Governments and communities have incorporated ICTs into their strategy and programming • How to approach the use of ICTs in their organisation or programme • Key technical and operational issues that support or constrain the use of ICTs NOTE: no specific ICT expertise is required for this course other than the use of standard office applications and web browsers and there is no ICT training provided in the course

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