News & Events

The best Master's thesis based on research related to Africa will be awarded with € 500 and will be published in the ASCL's African Studies Collection. Any final-year student who has completed his or her Master's thesis with distinction (80% or higher or a Dutch rating of at least an 8) at a university in Africa or the Netherlands may apply. The thesis must be based on independent empirical research related to Africa and must have been examined in the twelve months prior to the deadline of 10 July 2016.

Ton Dietz was interviewed by Science 071 Radio about the African Studies Centre Leiden becoming part of Leiden University. Dietz, director of the ASCL, speaks about the question of how the integration came to be, and what opportunities the joining of forces will bring along. Listen to the interview (in Dutch).

The African Studies Centre Leiden wishes you a happy, healthy and well-informed New Year! Visit our Country Portal, the data base that offers the latest news, twitter feeds, statistics, publications, country experts and much much more information about all 54 countries in Africa.

The Stephen Ellis Annual Lecture by Howard French on 10 December was a huge succes. His lecture, 'How today's China-Africa encounter came about and what it means for the world', was registered on video. If you missed it, take a look at the video.

The Dogon of Mali form one of the visual highlights of West Africa. With the spectacular setting of their villages against the Bandiagara cliff, their iconic mask performances and their ethnographic fame, they form a core attraction in West African culture tourism. But also Dogon daily life is well worth capturing on camera. This exhibition at the ASCL consists of photos made by senior researcher Wouter van Beek, on the occasion of his retirement at Tilburg University.

Over a hundred Africa scholars of Leiden University and the African Studies Centre Leiden met on Tuesday 8 December for the first ‘Leiden African Studies Assembly’ Meeting. It appeared a very encouraging assembly for the new Africa strategy that Leiden University is developing alongside the integration of the African Studies Centre into the University as of 1 January 2016. Leiden University wants to make Africa a more prominent part of its profile. The University’s leadership has decided to stimulate the integration of the ASCL and UL by starting a Leiden African Studies Integration Fund.