Paper short abstract:

By setting up a cooperative Master program on International Cooperation involving African and German scholars and students accompanied by research, HS Kehl and universities in Ethiopia, Senegal and South Africa promote Africa-based research on designing African-European and intra-African relations.

Paper long abstract:

In 2021, Hochschule Kehl launched the Master program “Public Management in International Cooperation”. Its content and operation were and are jointly developed and organized by Ethiopian, Senegalese, South African and German universities, with attendance phases in all four states. It aims at qualifying African and European students to better understand African-European and Intra-African cooperation projects to be enabled to better design, implement and manage such projects. Joint co-teaching teams from African and European universities open new cross- and trans-continental perspectives on topics, problems, and solutions. Mixed African-European multi-national student groups foster cross-national learning experiences, enhancing intercultural competencies. After an initial phase, where only Hochschule Kehl awards degrees, co-graduation from all partner universities in Africa and Europe is intended.

Underlying to the Master program is a university cooperation to build new equitable research partnerships between European and African and between African universities. Unlike traditional approaches with a European university leading, this cooperation follows a cooperative approach, giving African and European scholars equitable access to design, develop and implement research projects. Jointly designed and organized conferences will accompany the Master program. Results presented therein will be published and used to further develop the program. Expected impacts of this cooperation are enhanced visibility for African universities’ and scholars’ research, better recognition of African-driven research in European debates, a shift of research topic priorities toward African needs defined from an African perspective, a reduction of Euro-centricism in science and thus an advancement of science as a whole.

Paper short abstract:

La recherche en santé mondiale, aspirant à un positionnement égal des acteurs, connait des inégalités dans l'accès à la formation, aux financements et aux publications. Nous examinons comment améliorer la contribution des chercheurs africains dans la production de connaissance en santé mondiale.

Paper long abstract:

La santé mondiale est définie comme un domaine de recherche pluridisciplinaire et de pratique qui accorde la priorité à l'amélioration de la santé, à la réalisation de l'équité en santé pour tous les peuples du monde. Cette contribution est une analyse réflexive sur la recherche en santé mondiale en Afrique subsaharienne basée sur le cas du Burkina Faso et des aspects récurrents dans les relations dites de partenariat Nord-Sud. Les arguments développés prennent appui sur nos expériences d’intervenantes, de doctorante et de chercheure, sur des observations vécues dans le cadre de relations de partenariat, dans des espaces de recherche africains auxquels nous avons participé, combinant la consultation de documents écrits. Même si la santé mondiale conçoit le partenariat nord-sud comme centrale à ses fondements et aspire à un positionnement égal des acteurs, des inégalités persistantes demeurent dans l'accès à une formation, aux opportunités de publication et de financement qui se conjugue avec l’autorité voire la propriété des thèmes de recherche. Les partenaires du nord qui apportent le financement orientent de ce fait les recherches ce qui rend difficiles des conditions de production scientifique autonome. Cela fait en sorte que la compréhension et la conceptualisation occidentales des problèmes de santé mondiaux dominent également. Ce qui implique la non-prise en compte des spécificités contextuelles et les valeurs des populations. La présente communication apporte quelques recommandations pour une meilleure contribution des chercheurs africaine dans les productions de connaissances en santé mondiale.

Paper short abstract:

Even though collaborative research has become increasingly valued in various fields of the academia, only little attention has been given to research assistants, especially in so-called North-South collaborations. Here, we discuss the experiences of a Beninese and a Finnish research assistant.

Paper long abstract:

The recruitment of research assistants is routine and has a long history in 'North-South' research collaborations. However, little attention has been given to research assistants in studies on collaborations. Calls for research that is more tuned to respond to power asymmetries in knowledge production are growing, as are discussions on what could decolonizing research mean in practice.

In this paper, drawing from our field diaries and memory work after the ‘collaborative moment’, we discuss the experienced ambivalences in a ‘North-South’ collaboration funded by a Finnish university: a social scientific research project that studied a vaccine trial. From the viewpoints of a Finnish PhD researcher in sociology and a Beninese anthropologist, we pose questions such as: In 'North-South' collaborative settings, how does collaboration concretely play out in everyday practices/what does it mean? How do qualitative field methods and collaboration fit together? What might ‘decolonization’ mean in such a context, in the everyday (research) practices, by and for whom? How are colonial habits of knowledge production resisted or reproduced, how does epistemic disobedience become (im)possible?

By discussing our positionings as research assistants, we pay attention to both, the tensions in qualitative field methods and research assistance in a 'North-South' collaboration, and the enabling effects of such a mode of knowledge production. Though not bypassing how global structures of knowledge production are at play and generate epistemic exclusions, we suggest that such structures cannot be taken as all explanatory of (habits of) knowledge production in North-South collaborations, in the use of research assistants.

Paper short abstract:

Here, I discuss the aspects of both neocolonialist collaborative research, showing how political issues and inexperience disfavoured the Congolese side that my colleagues and I represented. Finally, I explore a more balanced, respectful collaborative research following an exploitative research.

Paper long abstract:

Collaborative research between African and European researchers is important for both African and European scholars for complementarity in knowledge production about Africa and beyond.

However, for historical, socio-economic and even political reasons, such collaboration did not always work in favour of both involved parties. Scholars in Africa and Europe have described this collaboration as being unbalanced, exploitative and more beneficial for the European/Western side for different reasons (funding opportunities, research infrastructures, experience and lack of other needed resources)…

In this paper, I explore the subject using my experience of collaboration going back from more than ten years with researchers from the Western world. Here I discuss the aspects of imperialist or neocolonialist collaborative research. I discuss how political issues and inexperience came into play to further disadvantage the Congolese side that my colleagues and I represented. Furthermore, I explore a more balanced, respectful, collaborative research that came into play later after my first failed experience. I touch the issue of the so-called research decolonization, where both parties are equals and the rights of participants are at the centre of any intervention.

Keywords: Collaborative research, Europe, Africa, neocolonialism, research decolonization, respect, Justice.