Africa Talks is a public event series that gives a platform to Africa's pre-eminent thinkers and practitioners across academia, politics, business and activism. Speakers present forward-thinking ideas to address contemporary global challenges.
Africa Talks predate the Institute, symbolising the long tradition of engagement between LSE and the African continent.
Previous Event
Our latest Africa Talks took place on 24 October 2023 and discussed the issues around activism and climate change in Africa.
Speakers:
Chido Mpemba is the Youth Envoy at the African Union Commission where she assists in championing youth development issues in Africa.
Winnie Cheche is an eco-blogger and climate activist. Currently, she leads the YMA Going Green Initiative, an NGO pioneering groundbreaking eco-friendly practices in orphanages and promoting nature education among teenagers and youth.
Josephine Chiname is an Atlantic Fellow for Social and Economic Equity at LSE and a social justice and movement lawyer who is passionate about business and human rights, climate justice, environmental child rights, and sustainable and equitable natural resource governance.
Chair:
Professor Armine Ishkanian, is a distinguished professor and expert in social policy as well as the Executive Director of the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity programme at the LSE International Inequalities Institute. Her research examines the relationship between civil society, democracy, development, and social transformation.
Each year, the FLIA holds three events as part of the series. Topics are judiciously selected following comprehensive consultations and are always pertinent to Africa, with the objective of engaging leading experts across different spaces and sparking ground-breaking conversations.
Held on the LSE campus and online, Africa Talks provides the opportunity to engage African audiences within the continent and across the diaspora, creating a global community that shares our goals of generating a more sustainable environment for Africa’s long-term prosperity.
Past Speakers
In recent years, Africa Talks has hosted many prominent speakers to discuss Africa's contemporary position within a global context: Dambisa Moyo (economist and author), Ibukun Awosika (chairman of First Bank of Nigeria), Ismail Ahmed (Founder of WorldRemit), Meaza Ashenafi (Chief Justice of the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia), Genevieve Nnaji (film director and actress), Fadumo Dayib (first woman to run for President of Somalia), OBE Margaret Busby (publisher) and Professor Amina Mama (editor of Feminist Africa) and Chido Mpemba (AU Youth Envoy).
High-profile speakers in previous years have included Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo (President of Ghana), John Mahama (former President of Ghana), Yemi Osibanjo (Vice-President of Nigeria), Joice Mujuru (former Vice-President of Zimbabwe) and Dr Donald Kaberuka (former president of the African Development Bank).
Africa Talks: Activism and Climate Change
Chido Mpemba, Winnie Cheche, and Josephine Chiname discussed with chair Armine Ishkanian how climate change was shaping activism in Africa and how, in turn, activism is shaping the continent's response to this global challenge.
Date: 24 October 2023
Time: 6:30-8:30pm
Hosted by the Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa
This event invites leading global exerts to discuss how Africa can best adapt to climate change. It will explore priorities for different regions, assess the opportunities and challenges in current thinking and approaches, and ask how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected adaptation trajectories, including on issues around cooperation at regional and global levels.
Date: 3 November 2021
Time: 2pm-3:30pm GMT
Watch here
Hosted by the Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa
This event builds on a conversation hosted last year which brought together high level speakers to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on Africa's food security. More than a year later, what challenges and opportunities exist for the African continent?
Date: Tuesday 1 June 2021
Watch on YouTube
Hosted by the Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa
This event examines the long history of feminist activism in Africa and its enduring impact on society from an intergenerational perspective. At this critical historic juncture, speakers interrogate current achievements and fault lines as well as the crucial future of African feminist activism.
Date: Thursday 12 November 2020
Platform: LSE Player
Watch on Facebook
Hosted by the Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa, as a part of LSE Festival
Date: Saturday 7 March 2020
Time: 12:45pm - 14:00pm
Venue: Sheikh Zayed Theatre, LSE
Speakers: OBE Margaret Busby, Sarah Ladipo Manyika, Angela Wachuka & Professor Karin Barber.
See here for more information.
Africa Talks: Decolonising African Knowledge Systems
Date: Thursday 16 January 2020
Time: 6.30pm–8.00pm
Venue: Wolfson Theatre, LSE
Speakers: Professor Akosua Adomako Ampofo, Dr Wangui wa Goro, Dr Romina Istratii & Dr Sara Salam as chair.
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