UNIBEN Advocates Afrocentric Knowledge Models

The Vice Chancellor of the University of Benin, Professor Edoba Omoregie, SAN, has called for a shift towards Afrocentric academic models and intra-African collaboration in knowledge production as part of a broader effort to promote intellectual self-reliance across the continent.

Professor Omoregie made the call during an interactive session with Associate Professor Aghogho Akpome of the English Department at the University of Zululand, South Africa, who visited the University of Benin to explore opportunities for academic partnership. The Vice Chancellor emphasised the importance of African universities developing homegrown assessment frameworks and peer review mechanisms grounded in African realities and epistemologies, rather than relying solely on foreign benchmarks. He noted that the strengthening of academic programmes through original thinking and new research paradigms is a key priority of his administration’s five-point agenda.

Professor Omoregie described the meeting as timely, stating that it aligns with the University’s long-term vision of fostering intellectual independence and academic innovation. Delivering a presentation titled “Building New Knowledge Ecologies in a Multipolar World: Imperatives for African Universities,” Professor Akpome underscored the urgency of redefining higher education frameworks in Africa. He argued that African institutions must pursue intellectual sovereignty through collaborative, multidisciplinary research grounded in African thought systems and worldviews.

He proposed a partnership between the University of Benin and the University of Zululand to jointly develop an Afrocentric model of knowledge production and academic assessment—an initiative he believes could reshape the continent’s educational landscape. The Director of External Linkages and Internationalisation at UNIBEN, Professor Ehijie Enato, and the University’s Head of Public Relations, Dr Benedicta Ehanire, are currently working with Professor Akpome on formalising the collaboration.

Also present at the meeting were principal officers of the University of Benin and heads of departments from English and Literature, Mass Communication, Linguistics, and Theatre Arts, indicating broad institutional support for the initiative. The proposed partnership marks a significant step toward developing a Pan-African academic framework that promotes sustainable, context-driven scholarship in African universities.