BGU Lecturer to Speak at Prestigious African Studies Conference

Dr Hadiza Kere Abdulrahman, Lecturer of Inclusive Education at Bishop Grosseteste University (BGU), will travel to Edinburgh later this month for the European Conference for African Studies where she will be speaking on the life of Professor Pius Adesanmi.

Professor Pius Adesanmi was eminent academic of Academic Studies who sadly lost his life in the Ethiopian Airlines crash. He was a professor of Literature and African Studies at Carleton University in Canada, a writer, academic and influential public intellectual, who was not only a selfless scholar but made academia accessible to everyone.

Dr Abdulrahman became involved through her work as an Africanist scholar, which is increasingly gaining prominence due to its focus on a topical alternative education system in northern Nigeria, and described the opportunity to speak on the legacy of the late professor as an immense honour.

As part of her appearance at the conference, Dr Abdulrahman will also be presenting a paper looking at her research titled: 'Acts of Malamta': How the Almajirai of Northern Nigeria navigate the paradoxes of their 'everyday'. The paper explores an alternative education system which sees almost 10 million young boys considered as out of school and often at the mercy of the streets.

Speaking ahead of the conference Dr Abdulrahman described how the research intersects with her role at BGU:

“As an Inclusive education lecturer my background allows me to argue the case for inclusivity in the broadest sense of the term and equips me with the knowledge of educating marginal groups and promoting education for social justice. I intend to carry on with my research and public engagement in this field and I regularly present at Africanist conferences on both sides of the pond.”

The European Conference for African Studies is one of the largest African conferences in the world and will take place on 12th -14th of June at the University of Edinburgh.

Our academics are regularly invited to present at conferences around the world, you can follow all their travels on our news page and find out how you can start your own adventures on our course pages.