Call to advance Afrocentric student affairs

The delegates of the Afrocentric Student Affairs International Conference, comprising passionate student affairs practitioners, visionary student leaders, insightful researchers, and dedicated policymakers from universities throughout South Africa, the African continent, and the African diaspora, recently convened at CPUT to champion the advancement of Afrocentric student affairs scholarship.

Nonkosi Tyolwana, the Dean of Student Affairs, expressed her heartfelt gratitude to Professor Rishi Balkaran, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning. He set the tone for the 2025 Afrocentric Student Affairs International Conference, which took place at Granger Bay Campus with the theme: "Africanising Student Affairs through Ubuntu: Infusing African Epistemology". During the conference, he presented the "Student Affairs Scholarship and Engagement Model Theory" as an effective framework for achieving academic goals within student affairs.

Understanding the pressing need to decolonise higher education and embrace African epistemologies, the delegates expressed their heartfelt commitment to the principles of Ubuntu, which remind us that "I am because we are." They acknowledged the transformative power of African-centered education in nurturing student access, success, and retention, and are dedicated to creating an inclusive environment that the conference aims to support all learners on their educational journeys.

The keynote address - Driving agenda 2063 through Afrocentric education to enhance growth and development was delivered by Deputy Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Alvin Botes, who is also a former president of the Student Representative Council at CPUT (Peninsula Technikon then).

The key outcomes of the conference included the following:

• Development of a holistic Afrocentric Student Success framework, in collaboration with Assistant Deans for Learning and Teaching, FUNDANI CHED, the Director of the Centre for Diversity, Inclusivity, and Social Change, Brightness Mangolothi, student leaders, and professional associations such as NASDEV, ACUHO-i-SAC, and SASSAAP.
• Institutionalisation of residences as “Afrocentric Living, Learning, and Listening Communities” (LLLc) within the context of Afrocentric theory and philosophy.
• Harmonisation of Afrocentric Student Leadership Academies across student affairs in higher education.
• Establishment of Peace and Security initiatives through relevant national and international instruments to promote a “Safe and Secure Campus Life.”
• Creation of the Global Afrocentric Student Affairs Scholarship Network (GASAS.net) as a resolution of the conference. A multi-stakeholder Task Team has been established to drive this process.

Looking back on the event, Tyolwana highlighted the key takeaways: "The conference brought together student affairs practitioners, researchers, student leaders, and academics from across the continent to explore 'student affairs scholarship' in higher education. The main outcomes included:

• Analysing how student development theories can be applied within Afrocentric frameworks, which is essential for supporting our diverse student populations.
• Investigating the direct connection between student affairs scholarship and the academic project."

The Conference Declaration emphasizes the ongoing historical demands of students for decolonized education, in line with various texts adopted by African States that promote African cultures and languages. Key documents include:

• The Pan-African Cultural Manifesto of Algiers (1969)
• The Cultural Charter for Africa (1976)
• The Declaration on the Cultural Aspects in the Lagos Plan of Action (1985)
• The draft Charter for the Promotion of African Languages in Education developed in Accra (1996)
• The Harare Declaration (1997)
• The Nairobi Plan of Action for Cultural Industries in Africa (2005)
• The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (2003)
• The Language Plan of Action for Africa (2006)
• The Charter for African Cultural Renaissance (2006)

Additionally, the delegates acknowledge the relevance of Agenda 2063, which calls for:

• Revising African higher education to align with the ideals of African-centeredness and values, as well as the educational aspirations of Pan-African universities.
• Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 on “Inclusive Education,” which intersects with all 17 Goals.
• Given the necessity to promote Afrocentric scholarship within student affairs and to affirm a student-centered African identity, the conference urges higher education institutions across the continent to take concerted and concrete measures to strengthen the integration of Afrocentricity within the academic and social frameworks of universities.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
Email: BoyceAp@cput.ac.za