Birkbeck, University of London, Faculty of Continuing Education

In partnership with

African Foundation for Development (AFFORD)

Present an eight-week course

Africans Without Borders:

Development from a Distance?

Running each Wednesday from 26th May 2004 - 7th July 2004 between 6pm
and 9pm

Room 2.03, Clore Management Centre, Birkbeck College, 25-27,
Torrington Square, London WC1

Course Aims
The aims of the course are to:

1. Critically examine and debate the contribution of the African
diaspora to Africa's development;

2. Consider the role of African diaspora organisations in terms
of influencing development and practice in ways that advance the
interests of African development;

3. Critically examine contemporary issues including advocacy,
sustaining small and community development groups, future strategies
and development policy processes.

Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students should have:

1. Gained a critical understanding of the role of the African
diaspora in addressing Africa's challenges in a historical
perspective;

2. Deepened appreciation of some of the potential opportunities
and pitfalls facing African diaspora organisations supporting
Africa's development;

3. Developed a greater awareness of the conditions under which
African diaspora organisations operate and the potential for
improvement of these conditions;

4. Identified a number of practical strategies at individual and
organisational levels for enhancing the capacity of the African
diaspora in supporting Africa's development;

5. Developed networking and advocacy skills to further the aims
of community development organisations.

Teaching and Learning Methods
The course is highly participatory and the sessions will consist of
workshops. A key premise of the course is that although individuals
will have different levels of experience of the topics discussed,
every learner has much to offer fellow course participants. Indeed,
the true power of the learning experience is unleashed through active
use of the space created to share, reflect, challenge together and to
support each other. Each session will consist of debates and
discussions and presentations based on case studies, which form an
integral aspect of the course.

Individual Record of Learning
All students will be asked to complete an Individual Record of
Learning. The completion of this form will hopefully support you in
your current and future learning and give your lecturer the
opportunity to assess your interests and achievements thus far.

Brief course outline
· Diaspora & development in perspective (26/05/2004)

· Follow the money; guests: Michael Norton, Centre for
Innovation in Voluntary Action, Africa Grants Team, Comic Relief
(tbc) (02/06/2004)

· Problems and potentials of organising in the UK; guest:
Krishna Sarda, CEO, CEMVO (09/06/2004)

· Advocacy and global citizenship: By who for who? Guest: Dr
Firoze Manji, Fahamu (16/06/2004)

· Supporting Africa's development: What has and has not
worked? (23/06/2004)

· Media representations of Africa/development: Whose myths,
whose realities? Guests: Desmond Davies, Africa Week Magazine; Henry
Bonsu, journalist (30/06/2004)

· Tackling Africa's brain drain - Careers in and for Africa:
options, employment and diversity in the UK international and
development sectors; Guest: Dr Titi Banjoko,
CBCRecruit/Findajobinafrica.com (03/07/2004 - part of African
Diaspora & Development Day 2004, at City Hall, London SE1 from 09:30-
10:30)

· Migration-development nexus and mainstream-diaspora
relations: Department for International Development (DFID) &
Connections for Development (CfD) case study. Guest speakers from
DFID & CfD (07/07/2004)

Fees
Course fees are £70 (£35) with concessions.

Enrolment
To enrol, please contact Ms Donna Pile, Faculty of Continuing
Education, Birkbeck, University of London, 26 Russell Square,
Bloomsbury, London WC1B 5DQ

Telephone: 020 7631 6653

Fax: 020 7631 6686

Email: [email protected]