Rhodes

The Rhodes University

Rhodes University’s African Cluster Centre (ACC) is located in the Faculty of Humanities, Rhodes University. It works with a network of scholars to promote research and teaching on African studies within an interdisciplinary framework. The Centre is established and recognised institutionally according to the Rhodes University Scholarly Entities Framework and is externally funded by the Germany Research Foundation via the University of Bayreuth’s African Cluster Centres of Excellence Strategy. The Rhodes ACC will develop into a fully-fledged African Studies Centre. For this reason, we seek to maintain enduring partnerships with other Cluster Centres and entities of similar intent in our vision of reimagining, repositioning and revitalising African Studies.

The centre has a team of scholars with diverse expertise ranging from social and political history of Africa; gender studies; language and language policy; water, climatic change and environmental learning; African politics; African literary studies; African art and aesthetics as well as African musicology. The Centre currently has as its members, three South African National Research Foundation Chairs, in addition to a number of rated researchers and established scholars. The founding Director is Professor Enocent Msindo, an African historian and former President of the Southern African Historical Society. Its members include: Professor Sally Matthews (African politics); Drs. Lynda Spencer, Aretha Phiri and Thando Njovane (English Literary Studies); Drs. Lee Watkins and Boudina McConnachie (The International Library of African Music, Rhodes - African musicology); Prof. Russell Kaschula (NRF Chair, African Languages); Prof. Patrice Mwepu (Francophone Africa studies); Dr. Nelson Odume (Water Research); Prof. James Gambiza (environment and climatic change), and Prof. Heila Lotz-Sisitka (NRF Chair on Environmental education).  

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