SC Connecticut News

On March 14-15, 2024, the Council on African Studies at the Yale MacMillan Center for International & Area Studies organized the “Yale Africa-China Symposium: Cultural Dimensions” in Maputo, Mozambique, focusing on the cultural aspects of Sino-African relations.

According to Cajetan Iheka, Professor of English and Chair of the Council on African Studies at Yale, the symposium aimed to move beyond the traditional economic and political discussions surrounding Africa-China relations. Iheka stated, "With the conference, it was important to transcend the impasse of the dominant Africa-China conversation, with its overdetermined and predictable political economy valence."

Mingwei Huang, Assistant Professor of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies at Dartmouth College, expressed satisfaction with the symposium, calling it "one of the most generative" conferences he had attended in the Africa-China sphere. He added, "It was really refreshing to come together with the cultural/humanistic fringe to think different ideas."

Olakunle Folami, a professor from Adekunle Ajasin University in Nigeria, highlighted the significance of the symposium in reassessing the Africa-China relationship from a cultural perspective. Folami noted, "The symposium provided a platform to reassess the relationship between Africa and China from a cultural perspective beyond just economic exploration."

Johannesburg-based artist and filmmaker Michael MacGarry praised the symposium for its focus on culture, stating, "The focus on culture diverges from other Africa China conferences [and] has led to so many modes of knowledge production."

Rundong Ning, a post-doctoral fellow at the Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences, commended the choice of Maputo as the symposium's location, emphasizing the importance of shedding light on Lusophone African countries in the Africa-China discourse. Ning remarked, "Maputo was a good choice, as Lusophone African countries receive comparatively less attention from scholars on Africa-China."

The symposium in Maputo not only deepened Yale's engagement in Africa but also provided a unique platform for scholars and participants to explore innovative research methods and cultural dynamics in Africa-China relations.