South Africa: Re-thinking the international development architecture

Contributor

Feb 01, 2006

The Asian Political and International Studies Association (APISA), the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO) and the Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA) are pleased to announce the Africa/Asia/Latin America scholarly collaborative initiative encompassing joint research, training, publishing and dissemination activities by researchers drawn from across the global South, and to call for applications for participation in the South-South comparative research seminars they are organising within the framework of the initiative.

RE-THINKING THE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ARCHITECTURE: PERSPECTIVES FROM THE SOUTH

DATES: 06 – 09 JULY, 2006

VENUE: PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA.

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

Within the ambit of the APISA-CLACSO-CODESRIA collaboration, a series of activities and programmes has been scheduled for implementation over the period to the end of 2007, among them an annual comparative research seminar. The seminar is designed to serve as a research forum for the generation of fresh and original comparative insights on the diverse problems and challenges facing the countries of the South. In doing so, it is hoped also that the seminar will contribute to the revival and consolidation of cross-regional networking among Southern scholars, foster a scholarly culture of Southern cross-referencing, and contribute to a type of theory-building that is more closely attuned to the shared historical contexts and experiences of the countries and peoples of the South. The seminar will be rotated among the three continents where the lead collaborating institutions are located, namely, Africa, Asia and Latin America. This way, participants in the seminars who will also be drawn from all three continents will be exposed to the socio-historical contexts of other regions of the South as an input that will help to broaden their analytical perspectives and improve the overall quality of their scientific engagements. The inaugural seminar is to be held on the African continent, with Pretoria, South Africa, serving as the host city.

1. OBJECTIVES:

The underlying objective of the comparative research seminar is to offer participants an opportunity to transcend the limitations of received wisdom emanating from structures and processes of knowledge production and dissemination that are characterised by various degrees and layers of inequality. In doing so, it is hoped to both motivate and equip participants in the seminar with the critical theoretical and methodological perspectives that might be appropriate for gaining a full understanding of the specific situation of countries and peoples located outside the core of the international system such as it is presently structured. The main premise for this effort is the glaring inadequacy of the theories and methodologies developed in the North, and crystallised in the mainstream social sciences, to provide the required instruments for the attainment of a sound and holistic understanding of the problems confronting – and, in many cases, overwhelming the countries of the South. Through the seminar, it is hoped to be able to mobilise scholars from across the South to reflect on the alternatives that are available for overcoming the present situation. This way, the seminar will contribute to the promotion of a better knowledge and understanding of the theories and methodological approaches developed in different regions of the South as alternatives to the dominant, Northern-biased paradigms that have shaped the social sciences. It is also expected that participants will become acquainted with the local intellectual environment in the regions where different sessions of the seminar are hosted, and strengthen their comparative research capacities in the process. In sum, the seminar is structured to serve as a unique forum for enhancing a deeper understanding among Southern scholars of the history, politics, economy and culture of the countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America, and offer an opportunity to participants to develop long-lasting collaborative relationships with their counterparts from other Southern countries.

2. ELIGIBILITY FOR PARTICIPATION:

Scholars resident in countries of the South and who are pursuing active academic careers are eligible to apply to participate in the seminar. Each applicant should have an advanced university education and an established track record of research and publishing in any of the disciplines of the social sciences and humanities. Selection for participation will be on the basis of a competitive process. All together, 12 people will be selected for participation in the institute on the basis of four each from Africa, Asia and Latin America. The full participation costs of the selected laureates will be covered, including their travel costs (economy return air tickets), accommodation and subsistence.

3. COORDINATION:

Each seminar will be convened and coordinated by an experienced Southern scholar recognised for the versatility of his/her knowledge, acknowledged for his/her skills in applying the comparative methodology, and known either for the depth of work s/he has done in different regions of the South or for his/her capacity to draw on experiences from across the South in his/her writings. The convenor/coordinator will be responsible for establishing the comparative framework for the seminar and will work with each participant to determine his or her primary area of focus. S/he will also undertake the task of synthesising results produced by the researchers into one major publication that will be designed to serve as a major statement on the theme of the seminar.

4. THE 2006 SEMINAR:

For the 2006 session of the South-South comparative research seminar, it has been decided by APISA, CLACSO and CODESRIA to host it in Pretoria, South Africa. CODESRIA will assume overall responsibility within the tri-continental partnership for the session. The local institutional host in South Africa that will be working closely with CODESRIA in managing the seminar is the African Association of Political Science (AAPS). The seminar will run from 06 to 09 July, 2006.It is a requirement that prospective laureates should have a demonstrable working knowledge of the English language. APISA, CLACSO and CODESRIA will work together with the local host to facilitate the procurement of entry visas toSouth Africa for the prospective participants whose applications are successful. At the end of the seminar, each participant will be expected to produce a publishable article which will be considered for inclusion in the book of proceedings that will be issued.

5. APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:

Every researcher wishing to be considered for selection as one of the 12 scholars to be invited to participate in the any of the comparative research seminars organised within the framework of the APISA-CLACSO-CODESRIA tri-continental partnership is required to submit an application that will comprise the following key items of documentation:

a) An outline research proposal, written in English, on the subject on which s/he would like to work. The topic selected must be related to the theme of the seminar and should have a demonstrable comparative potential. Proposals should not exceed 10 pages in length and should have a clearly defined problematic which can be followed through further research and culminate in a publishable scientific paper;

b) A covering letter, of one-page, which should indicate the motivation of the prospective researcher for wanting to participate in the seminar and explaining how they envisage that they and their institution will benefit from the programme;

c) An updated Curriculum Vitae complete with the names of the professional and personal references of the researcher, the scientific discipline(s) in which s/he is working, the nationality of the applicant, a list of recent publications, and a summary of the on-going research activities in which the applicant is involved;

d) A photocopy of the highest university degree obtained by the applicant and of the relevant pages of his/her international passport containing relevant identity data;

6. APPLICATION PROCEDURES AND DEADLINE

As the comparative research seminar will involve the participation of researchers from Africa, Asia and Latin America, it has been decided that applicants resident in Africa should submit their applications to CODESRIA, those resident in Asia to APISA and those resident in Latin America to CLACSO. The full contact details for APISA, CLACSO AND CODESRIA are reproduced below for the attention of all prospective applicants. The deadline for the receipt of applications is 15 May, 2006. Applications found to be incomplete or which arrive after the deadline will not be taken into consideration.

An independent Selection Committee charged with screening all applications received will meet shortly after the deadline for the receipt of applications. Successful applicants will be notified immediately the Selection Committee completes it work. Notification of results will be dome by e-mail, fax and post. The results of the selection exercise will also be published on the websites of APISA, CLACSO and CODESRIA.

Latin American and Caribbean applicants should send their applications to:

CLACSO,

(2006 South- South Summer Institute)

Callao 875, 3º (1023) Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA
Tel: (54 11) 4811-6588 / 4814-2301; Fax: (54 11) 4812-845
E-mail: [email protected]

Website: www.clacso.org

Asian applicants should send their applications to:

APISA,

(2006 South-South Summer Institute)

Strategic Studies and International Relations Program

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, MALAYSIA

Tel: 603- 89213647; Fax: 603-89213332

E-Mail: [email protected]