To our CIHA Readers — We know it has been a little while since you have heard from us, so we’d like to extend our apologies for our absence and let you know about what we’ve been up to and some of our future plans!
Updates:
In March 2022, in Saint-Louis, Senegal, the CIHA team was finally able to reunite after two long years of COVID-19 keeping us apart. It was wonderful to see fellow Co-Editors, as well as old and new Graduate Luce Fellows. We were excited to attend and support the launch of the Global Africa journal, headed by CIHA Co-Editor Mame Penda Ba from Gaston Berger University. Co-Editor Akosua Adomako Ampofo is the president of the journal’s conseil scientifique, on which Co-Editor Cecelia Lynch also serves. The “Africa Research Matters” conference, held 14-18 March to launch the journal, was extremely well attended by scholars across the African continent and beyond. The CIHA team also met 19-20 March in Saint-Louis to finalize the workshop to be held in Cape Town the following month (details below!)
We hope you will read through the first issue of the Global Africa journal, 
which lays out its trajectory as “a place for analysis and debate on Africa’s place in the world, in touch with global issues, and concerned with the “science of sustainability” and prospective research. The marginalisation of African research and publications in international scientific production – even though the continent is an exemplary place for the intertwining of local, national, community and transnational issues through the innovations and tensions that can be found there – demands that we provide a demanding and rigorous forum for the voices of African researchers to describe and reflect on the trajectories of the continent.”
Globalafrica est un lieu d’analyses et de débats sur la place de l’Afrique dans le Monde, en prise avec les enjeux globaux, soucieuse de s’inscrire dans la « science de la durabilité » et dans la recherche prospective. La marginalisation de la recherche et des publications de l’Afrique dans la production scientifique internationale – alors que le Continent est un lieu exemplaire de l’enchevêtrement des enjeux locaux, nationaux, communautaires et transnationaux par les innovations et tensions qui s’y repèrent – exige de fournir une tribune exigeante, rigoureuse, aux voix des chercheurs africains pour en décrire et en penser les trajectoires.
On 11-12 April 2022, in Cape Town, South Africa, the CIHA team hosted an exciting workshop that brought together representatives from media, non-profit, and religious organizations across the African continent, to discuss the future of the Blog, the significance of the CIHA online course, and to solidify media and NGO/FBO relationships. The 30 participants came from around the continent and the U.S., and included representatives from transnational and national NGOs, online and print media, and Muslim, Christian and African religions.
This workshop was held right before the biannual meeting of the 2022 African Studies Association of Africa, hosted 
by the University of Cape Town. The ASAA, co-created by Co-Editor Akosua Adomako Ampofo, is now in its 9th year; and this 4th biennial conference was its largest ever, including approximately 850 papers presented (see the ASAA program here). CIHA hosted two panels on “Humanitarianism and the Promised (but Failed) Redemption of African Humanness,” and “Reclaiming African Humanness and the Redemption of Humanitarian Practices.” Other highlights included a début film showing of “When Women Speak,” co-created by Co-Editor Akosua Adomako Ampofo. The entire conference congratulated her as outgoing ASAA President, and welcomed incoming President, CIHA-affiliated Toussaint Kafarhire.
Future:
As we work with our Cape Town workshop group to plan the future of the blog, we will also be sharing additional posts from alumni of our CIHA course as well as our Luce Graduate Fellows. Keep a lookout for posts that address humanitarian issues in CAR, Somalia and Ethiopia, among others.
Finally, check out our About page to read about recently joined members of our team, including Timothy Khabala, Saturnin Modeste Agramako, and Jeni Francisco, and Moonaya Yanni. We congratulate Luce Fellows who have either obtained their MA or Ph.D.s, and/or moved on to new posts during the past year, including Abena Kyere, Edwin Adjei, Linus Kawoundi, Allan Induswe, Moise Diedhieu, Elham Kazemi, and Misbah Hyder. We are delighted to have such a wide-ranging and growing CIHA family.