​​About

The National Research Foundation (NRF), South African Research Chair Initiative
African Diplomacy and Foreign Policy, University of Johannesburg

About

Who we are:

The DST-NRF-UJ SARChI Chair: African Diplomacy and Foreign Policy is a Pan-African research and postgraduate knowledge centre under the aegis of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Johannesburg. The chair is focusing on the fluctuating state of contemporary Pan-Africanism and the continent’s international affairs, bridging the worlds of theory and practice/decision making.

What we do:

Research: providing cutting edge analysis on Pan-African foreign policy, diplomacy and African agency.

Engagement: deepening strategic partnerships from across the continent and further afield. Convening workshops with researchers, academics, diplomats, civil servants and decision makers.

Academic supervision: provide supervision to postgraduate students looking to further their academic degrees in the field of foreign policy and diplomacy.

Developing Expertise: Students at the SARChI Chair

Along with research, outreach and the cultivation of graduate students are key objectives of the Chair. Prof Landsberg, and a Senior Researcher, Dr. Lesley Masters, supervise Masters and Doctoral theses in areas broadly within the scope of African foreign policy, including areas as diverse as the interrogation of the concept of ‘hegemony’ in the Southern African region, to the analysis of the European Union’s relations with the countries of North Africa.

The SARChI Chair has crafted a niche centre for the development of young scholars, preparing students for future positions in academia, think ​tanks, the private sector and government. This includes research and writing seminars where students are provided with the opportunity to engage in debate, build networks, hone their writing skills and are exposed to the a variety of thinking from their peers.​

Opportunities for Post-Doctoral Fellows

In addition to graduate students, the Chair is host to a number of post-doctoral fellows whose work contributes to the vision of the Chair, focusing on areas including the dynamics of conflict in Kenya, the political economy of southern Africa, and the technological aspects of African diplomacy.

Engagement and outreach

The Chair has hosted a number of high-profile events since its inception in December 2012, including the launch of a book by the leading economist, Raymond Parsons, Zumanomics, an evening with former Robben-Island prisoner, Mr Ahmed Kathrada; Dr. Adekeye Adebajo from the Centre for Conflict Resolution; Adv. Vusi Pikoli; Ambassador Tony Leon; Ambassador James Jonah, former UN Under-Secretary General for Political Affairs. It also hosted the Johannesburg launch of the 2013 UN Development Report, with the UN Resident Coordinator in South Africa, Dr Agostinho Zacarias.

The SARChI Chair also collaborates with a number of prominent South African research institutes, such as the Institute for Global Dialogue (IGD), the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR), and TUT’s SARChI Chair For African Innovation and Development, and it is consolidating its international links, including in the rest of Africa, Latin America, Asia, and the West.

Vision, Mission and Values

VISION:

A Pan-African research and post-graduate development centre of international repute engaging African challenges through rigorous research in diplomacy and foreign policy​

MISSION:

Informing Africa’s transformation and standing in world affairs through the development of high-calibre post-graduates and original and innovative knowledge production

VALUES:

*Ubuntu is the capacity to express compassion, justice, reciprocity, dignity, harmony and humanity in the interests of building, maintaining and strengthening the community. Ubuntu speaks to our inter-connectedness, our common humanity and the responsibility to each that flows from our connection.