UNILAG 29th Inaugural Lecturer Calls for Adoption of Afrocentricity in Education to Spur African Renaissance

Professor Ndukaeze Nwabueze, a distinguished professor of Sociology of Development and Industrial Relations at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), has called for the widespread adoption of Afrocentric principles in education, urging African scholars and institutions to indigenize knowledge and focus on solving local problems. Prof. Nwabueze made this statement during the 29th Inaugural Lecture of the 2023/2024 academic session, held on Wednesday, October 16, 2024, at the J.F. Ade Ajayi Auditorium, UNILAG.

Delivering his lecture titled "Afrocentricity: The Power of Weakness," Prof. Nwabueze argued that the continued underdevelopment in Nigeria and across Africa is largely a result of the uncritical adoption of colonial education systems, which, according to him, were designed to subjugate and control rather than empower. He emphasized that Afrocentric education offers a pathway to reversing this trend by instilling confidence, creativity, and self-reliance in learners.

"The received colonial education has embedded fear, lack of confidence, and a dependent mindset into the consciousness of colonized people. This education has stagnated growth in Africa, but Afrocentricity can unlock the hidden strength in the perceived weaknesses of our people," Nwabueze remarked.

Afrocentricity, as he explained, is rooted in indigenous knowledge systems and values that challenge Western supremacist ideologies. It prioritizes critical thinking, originality, and a deep connection to local realities, offering an alternative framework to the elitism and conservatism found in Western sociology.

Prof. Nwabueze, who has been a professor at UNILAG since 2017, outlined his efforts to develop Afrocentric Sociology, a new discipline he is spearheading by merging traditional sociological concepts with Afrocentric perspectives. This initiative includes a forthcoming introductory textbook on Afrocentric Sociology and curriculum reforms in collaboration with two Nigerian universities.

He concluded the lecture by calling for a complete overhaul of Nigeria’s education system, aligning it with the needs of African societies, and urging the state to play an active role in these reforms.

Born in 1955, Prof. Nwabueze has dedicated his career to reshaping the study of sociology in Africa, with his latest lecture further solidifying his influence in academia and his advocacy for an African intellectual renaissance. https://unilag.edu.ng/?p=43312