“Rural Development” and the Search for an African Development Paradigm

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebeka Richard Plaatjie
Keyword(s):  
Rural Development ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
African Culture ◽  
African Development ◽  
Philosophical Ethic ◽  
Development Paradigm

This chapter departs from the premise that African problems demand not African solutions but solutions founded on the principles of African culture and philosophy. The chapter analyzes hegemonic Euro-American-centric ideas of development and rural development from the perspective of the African philosophy of ubuntu. This chapter per the author dismisses the idea of “rural development” because it argues that “rural” is an oxymoron in African culture and philosophy and thus a discourse of a colonial heritage. The chapter understands “rural development” as a narrow Euro-American-centric construction founded on the principles of economism and classism of the Western philosophical ethic and which, according to the chapter, needs decolonization through ubuntu. The chapter further suggests pathways towards an African “rural development” paradigm.

scholarly journals Eurocentric Pitfalls in the Practice of African Philosophy: Reflections on African Universities

Phronimon ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ephraim Gwaravanda ◽  
Amasa Ndofirepi
Keyword(s):  
Continental Philosophy ◽  
The Self ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
African Culture ◽  
Philosophical Thought ◽  
African Development ◽  
African Languages ◽  
Self Evaluation ◽  
Research Gap ◽  
Self Examination

We argue that African philosophy scholars are sometimes blinded by Eurocentric tendencies in the practice of African philosophy, and that it is important to identify and overcome these problems. The research gap we intend to fill is that the route of self-examination, self-criticism and self-evaluation has been underexplored in the practice of African philosophy at universities in Africa. The self-understanding of African philosophy is necessary for the reconstruction of indigenous elements for the purpose of African development. Firstly, African philosophy is divided along Eurocentric lines of analytic and continental philosophy. We argue that such a dualism closes other approaches to African philosophy. Secondly, the practice of African philosophy is done in the language of the colonisers; however, concepts from indigenous African languages remain largely unexplored. Thirdly, the Eurocentric approach of making philosophy “universal” and “transcultural,” results in African scholars seeking a general African philosophy that fails to accommodate the diversity and richness of African cultures. Fourthly, African philosophy, as practised in African universities, tends to disregard African culture as the basis of philosophical thought in trying to make philosophy scientific and objective. We argue for decolonial thinking as a means of making African philosophy more genuine.

scholarly journals Reflections and Insights on Leadership Competencies in Botswana: Lessons and Experiences for African Managers

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Motsomi Ndala Marobela
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
Leadership Competencies ◽  
Hard Work ◽  
Capital City ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
African Culture ◽  
Customer Care ◽  
Leadership Crisis

In Africa, leadership crisis stalls many organisations from realizing their goals and holds back people from attaining their dreams. Yet African culture is rich with experiences which draw from the wisdom of traditional leadership, with its emphasis on communality, hard work and kindness as emblematic in the spirit of Ubuntu (Botho) (van de Colff, 2003) an African philosophy which inculcates compassion and integrity. This paper reflects on insights of leadership practices in some of Botswana organisations to appreciate the challenges they face in steering the leadership pedestal and their impact in fostering organizational success. The role of leadership is examined against a set of attributes and functions. For example, articulation of vision, staff welfare, customer care and more importantly the extent to which leadership contributes towards social justice and equity is considered. The study was conducted in Gaborone, the capital city of Botswana, based on exploratory mini practical survey. This involved unstructured personal interviews with industry leaders’ from private, public and non-governmental entities, to understand their roles as leaders and explore issues that preoccupy them and appreciate the challenges they face. Key findings from this research are the realization that the intersection between scholarship and practitioners provides a powerful mediatory process of reflection for leadership learning, more especially in transformation. Leaders who reflect are constantly imagining the vision of their organisations and ways of actualizing it.

Sophie Olúwọlé's Major Contributions to African Philosophy

Hypatia ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-242
Author(s):  
Gail Presbey
Keyword(s):  
Women's Rights ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Women’S Rights ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
African Culture ◽  
Similarities And Differences ◽  
Culture And Development ◽  
The University ◽  
Philosophical Questions ◽  
Reasoning And Argument

AbstractThis article provides an overview of the contributions to philosophy of Nigerian philosopher Sophie Bọ´sẹ`dé Olúwọlé (1935–2018). The first woman to earn a philosophy PhD in Nigeria, Olúwọlé headed the Department of Philosophy at the University of Lagos before retiring to found and run the Centre for African Culture and Development. She devoted her career to studying Yoruba philosophy, translating the ancient Yoruba Ifá canon, which embodies the teachings of Orunmila, a philosopher revered as an Óríṣá in the Ifá pantheon. Seeing his works as examples of secular reasoning and argument, she compared Orunmila's and Socrates' philosophies and methods and explored similarities and differences between African and European philosophies. A champion of African oral traditions, Olúwọlé argued that songs, proverbs, liturgies, and stories are important sources of African responses to perennial philosophical questions as well as to contemporary issues, including feminism. She argued that the complementarity that ran throughout Yoruba philosophy guaranteed women's rights and status, and preserved an important role for women, youths, and foreigners in politics.

scholarly journals Tracing shift in Czech rural development paradigm (Reflections of Local Action Groups in the media)

2016 ◽  
Vol 62 (No. 4) ◽  
pp. 149-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Boukalova ◽  
A. Kolarova ◽  
M. Lostak
Keyword(s):  
Rural Development ◽  
Development Policy ◽  
Local Action ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Paradigmatic Shift ◽  
Quantitative Content ◽  
The Media ◽  
Development Paradigm ◽  
Action Groups ◽  
The Eu

Local Action Groups (LAG) as actors in the EU rural development policy reflect the endogenous paradigm. They utilize the cooperation of their members and social networks to achieve the goals defined in their strategies developed upon the EU regulations on rural development. The paper demonstrates how the printed Czech media reflect the activities of LAGs. Such research gives a background to answer the question if the references to LAGs in the Czech Republic highlight the paradigmatic shift from the material factors towards the endogenous or hybrid resources embedded in using the intangible factors for development. The research consists in the quantitative content analysis of 498 articles about Czech local action groups. The analysis indicates that paradigmatic shift is only at the beginning. LAGs activities are still reported to be embedded in using the material factors (exogenous approach) instead of reporting and accounting the endogenous resources composed of both material and non-material factors of rural development.

scholarly journals From hauntology to a new animism? Nature and culture in Heinz Kimmerle’s intercultural philosophy

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Murray Hofmeyr
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Philosophy ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
African Philosophy ◽  
African Culture ◽  
New Humanism ◽  
Nature And Culture ◽  
Inclusive Concept ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Intercultural Philosophy

Derrida has proposed a new spectrology in an attempt to deal with the ghost of Marx. Kimmerle shows that Marx has forgotten nature, and enquires about Derrida’s forgetting Marx’s forgetting. With specific reference to African culture he asks whether a new animism should not be explored within the framework of a new spectrology. Derrida uses the concept animism, but not in terms of the being of things in and ofthemselves, which could positively be thought as animated. Kimmerle proposes a way in which Western philosophy could be opened to African philosophy in order to understand the problem of animated nature more adequately. African philosophy has a concept of the universe of spiritual forces, in which nature and its powers arecompletely integrated. This paper explores these issues in dialogue with a number of African philosophers, while linking them to certain contestations within environmental philosophy and ethics, especially Murray Bookchin’s critique of spirit-talk in Deep Ecology. Kimmerle’s work on the relationship between Africa and Hegel sets the scenefor an elaboration of his re-evaluation of animism which is compared to the groundbreaking hypothesis of Bird-David. A relational epistemology is understood in ethical terms, and it is implied that such an epistemology would be more adequate for a new humanism that would be new in going beyond the western tradition, and in the processgain a more inclusive concept of “person” and “community”.

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