Supporting Africans

This Network is set up by John & Elnora Ferguson Centre for African Studies (JEFCAS) and coordinated in partnership with The NILE African Development Organisation. It began with the recognition that there are many small organisations and initiatives working in partnership with African organisations for peace and development.  Very often these are operating with small teams of passionate and committed volunteers but are limited by staff capacity and resources.  There are also many community institutions (schools, churches and faith groups) with links to African partners. 

Migration, technology and accessible air travel have made the world highly inter-connected.  The ability to create links is more possible than ever before. Remittances from migrant workers back to their homes are now thought to outstrip official flows of development aid. Similarly the multiple partnerships and linkages between diaspora and small development organisations are increasing and significant and yet are unmapped.

It is likely that in working more closely together, in sharing knowledge and resources, we can make a more sustained and strategic impact.

Therefore the network has 4 main aims:

The Network will also serve as a background programme for the forthcoming conferences, projects, research and studies and collaborative work.

‘To this day we continue to lose the best among ourselves because the lights in the developed world shine brighter.’ - Nelson Mandela

This network is part of a program we are calling, “The North Targeting Africa 2015: development awareness, networking and lifelong learning among African organisations in the North”. {Diaspora and Development}

What most of this region’s African Diaspora groups have in common is their deep seated conviction that people who are poor and needy can with some assistance take control of their lives and work in partnership for their

collective improvement. Report from these organisations demonstrate that rural development in Africa has been attempted and achieved among poor and deprived areas in collaboration with the rural communities. Despite differences in background, ethnicity, culture and experiences all these organisations are united by a vision of what Africa can become in the future and how their contribution can facilitate this process.

Centre for African Studies Outreach Program [CASOP]

The continent of Africa is one of the least taught of the world’s geographical areas. Its teaching is blurred by stereotypical images. The NILE offers workshops for primary teachers which explore; African diversity, how to teach about Africa, ways of integrating Africa into the curricula, how to evaluate materials on Africa, recommendation of audio visual materials and special topics.

The Outreach Program is part of the Centre for African Studies at The NILE African Development Organisation, Village-to-Village and all partners. The Centre directs, develops and coordinates interdisciplinary instruction, research and outreach on Africa. The Outreach Program includes a variety of activities whose objective is to improve the teaching of Africa in schools at the primary, secondary, college, and university level, and also to the community. Faculty and graduate students make presentations on Africa to the community and schools in the North. People interested should contact the Director of Outreach for more information.