The Institute of Political Studies of Bordeaux (Science Po Bordeaux), the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) and IFRA-Nigeria are pleased to announce a research training and proposal development seminar on the Politics of xenophobic exclusion in Africa, to be held at the IFRA-Nigeria Seminar Room, Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan, from 16th to 17th January 2013.
This seminar is part of XenAfPol research project, which has been setup to look at the political implications of xenophobic processes and systems of differentiation between ‘nationals’ and ‘foreigners’, ‘autochthones’ and ‘non autochthones’, ‘indigenes’ and ‘non indigenes’ in several African countries.
Indeed, as the African population continues to grow and move, the continent’s societies have seen increasing social, cultural, linguistic and economic heterogeneity. Cities and metropolitan areas have now reached a crossroads where local authorities have little effective control over the socio-economic processes, which they have been charged to manage. Long-term and more recent voluntary and forced movements and forms of inclusion and exclusion going along with them contribute to a rapidly evolving redistribution of power and space that is at once highly visible but yet poorly understood. What makes this particularly visible today in several countries across the continent is the fact that exclusion has taken the form of violent attacks targeting more specifically foreigners or groups identified as ethnic, political, or religious outsiders.
This project aims to document these phenomena in two specific areas: that of the changing social dynamics at work in the continent between hosts and strangers, nationals and foreigners and that of the role of the State in managing cultural diversity and socio-economic differentiation.
Three research questions will guide researchers’ work:
1. The historicity of politics and place in the production of xenophobic exclusion and violence
2. Forms of mobilisation, counter-mobilisation and demobilisation
3. The question of state retreat or embededness
More details about the programme’s aims can be found at the following address: www.ifas.org.za/research/pdf/xenafpol.pdf
The seminar in Nigeria aims at exploring how indigeneity came to be defined in looking especially at historical relationships between indigenes and non-indigenes in different places of the country. We are both interested in empirical case studies where indigenes-non indigenes relationships have been either peaceful and negotiated or have led to conflict and collective violence.
The seminar is open to eight (8) PhD students and post-doctoral students from Nigerian Universities. It will provide a platform to discuss the case studies, the theoretical and methodological issues related to the study of xenophobic exclusion in Africa, together with an opportunity to develop a research proposal for submission to a peer-reviewed competition for grants to cover a two-month period of field and archival research in early 2013.
Applications for a place at the seminar should be send to e.apard@ifra-nigeria.org and copy to admin@ifra-nigeria.org by December 31st, 2012.
The application should consist of:
a biographical brief including, name, address, contact details (e-mail and phone), date of birth and educational details
a statement explaining how the seminar and resulting project would fit with the candidate’s work
a concise proposal comprising title of proposed research, a description of the main research question, and an indication of the main area, institution, and/or archive under scrutiny.
The proposal should also indicate an awareness of methodology and theoretical approach to be used, and evidence of the feasibility of the research from the point of view of planning and budget. Applications are welcome from participants from all across Nigeria, and a stipend to cover costs of attendance is available for successful applicants.
The seminar will be jointly organized by Dr. Laurent Fouchard, Professor at Science Po Bordeaux, coordinator of XenAfPol project, and Dr. Gérard Chouin, Director of IFRA-Nigeria.
Download proposal :
- XenAfPol Research Project : Call for proposal
