Deadline for applications: 21 January 2024
The Claude Ake Visiting Chair
The Claude Ake Visiting Chair was set up in 2003 at the Department of Peace and Conflict Research,
Uppsala University (DPCR), in collaboration with the Nordic Africa Institute (NAI). The Chair honors the
memory of Professor Claude Ake, a distinguished scholar, philosopher, teacher and humanist, who died
tragically in 1996. The Chair is intended for scholars who, like Claude Ake, combine a profound
commitment to scholarship with a strong advocacy for social justice. The Chair is open to social scientists
working at African universities with problems related to war, peace, conflict resolution, human rights,
democracy and development on the African continent. The Chair holder is offered a conducive environment to pursue his or her own research, while there is also opportunity for lecturing, holding seminars and contributing to ongoing research activities at the
Department of Peace and Conflict Research and the Nordic Africa Institute
Application and Appointment
The Department of Peace and Conflict Research and the Nordic Africa Institute currently invite
applications to the Claude Ake Visiting Chair for 2024. Applicants should be internationally recognized
senior scholars with professorial competence in their respective fields of expertise. Normally, this
translates to Professor, Associate Professor, or their equivalence. The Chair holder is expected to spend
three (3) months in Uppsala in the time span of mid-August to mid December 2024. Applications from
female candidates are encouraged.
The application must contain
• A complete and updated curriculum vitae (CV), including relevant information regarding
academic title, current and previous positions, research and teaching activities, and a list of
publications. It should also include all relevant contact information.
• A short abstract of the research project to be carried out as a visiting chair holder.
• A research proposal outlining the main features of the research project to be carried out during the
visit, including the expected results. The length of the proposal should be a minimum of 3 and a
maximum of 5 pages.
• Two of the applicant’s publications. These should normally be the two most important articles
related to the research project to be pursued during the visit.
• A signed recommendation letter from a senior scholar or policymaker working in the same field
as the applicant.
• A signed letter from the applicant’s Head of Department or Dean (or equivalent) which confirms
that the institution the nominee is associated with supports the application.
The Claude Ake Visiting Chair Committee reviews the applications and appoints the Chair. The Committee
is currently made up of Associate Professor Anders Themnér (Project Leader for the Claude Ake Visiting
Chair, DPCR), Professor Eleanor Fisher (NAI), and Marie Karlsson (Administrative Coordinator for the
Claude Ake Visiting Chair, NAI).
THE NORDIC AFRICA INSTITUTE
Terms
The awardee is entitled to a tax-free stipend/scholarship of 30 000 SEK/month. If the awardee is absent
from Uppsala for reasons not associated with the program, deductions will be made to the
stipend/scholarship. In addition, travel costs and accommodation for the holder of the position is covered
by the grant. The Chair holder is provided office space at the DPCR and NAI, and basic office equipment
Claude Ake Memorial Lecture and Publication
The holders of the Claude Ake Visiting Chair give, at the end of their stay in Uppsala, a public lecture called
the ‘Claude Ake Memorial Lecture.’ The title, theme and content of the lecture should be based on the
research project being pursued by the chair holder while in Uppsala. The assumption is that the topic of
the lecture shall, in a general sense relate to the work of Claude Ake, for example in terms of themes or
issues covered, or in the theoretical or normative points of departure. The lecture is to be based on a paper
prepared and submitted before the chair holder leaves Uppsala. After a review process, the paper will be
published in the Claude Ake Memorial Paper Series (CAMP). Please note that 20 % of the scholarship
(6,000 kr/month, 18,000 kr in total), will be retained and paid out first after the delivery of the first draft
of the paper.
Please note that incomplete applications or applications received after this date will not be considered.
Also note that the Claude Ake Visiting Chair is dependent on external funding. In the extraordinary event
that the program does not receive full funding – and the awarded position is withdrawn or the size of the
scholarship reduced – the awardee or applicants will be informed immediately.
Previous holders of the Claude Ake Visiting Chair
2003 Professor L. Adele Jinadu (Nigeria); a former President of the African Association of Political Science
(AAPS); Jinadu is Executive Director of the Centre for Advanced Social Science (CASS), in Port Harcourt,
Nigeria.
2004 Dr. Cyril I. Obi (Nigeria); Associate Research Professor at the Nigerian Institute of International
Affairs and Senior Research Fellow/Programme Coordinator at the Nordic Africa Institute, Uppsala.
2005 Professor Amadu Sesay (Sierra Leone); Head of the Department of International Relations, Obafemi
Awolowo University, Nigeria.
2006 Professor Kwame Boafo-Arthur (Ghana); Head of the Department of Political Science, University of
Ghana at Legon.
2007 Professor Charles Villa-Vicencio (South Africa); Professor Emeritus at the University of Cape Town
and Executive Director of the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR), Cape Town.
2008 Professor Adam Azzain Mohamed (Sudan); Director of the Institute for the Study of Public
Administration and Federal Governance at the University of Khartoum.
2009 Professor Yash Tandon (Uganda); writer, policymaker and former executive director of the South
Centre, a leading international policy institute, based in South Africa.
2010 Dr. Yacob Arsano (Ethiopia); Associate Professor of Political Science & International Relations at
Addis Ababa University. He has also been serving as Dean of the College of Social Sciences at AAU since
2006.
2012 Dr. Pamela Mbabazi (Uganda); Associate Professor of Development Studies at Mbarara University of
Science & Technology and Deputy Vice Chancellor.
2013 Professor Victor Adetula (Nigeria); Professor of International Relations & Development Studies at
the University of Jos, Nigeria.
THE NORDIC AFRICA INSTITUTE
2014 Professor Maxi Schoeman (South Africa); Head of Department of Political Sciences and Professor of
International Relations at University of Pretoria, South Africa.
2015 Professor Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela (South Africa); Senior Research Professor for trauma,
forgiveness and reconciliation at the University of the Free State, South Africa. She served on the South
African Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Human Rights Violations Committee.
2016 Professor Tim Murithi (Kenya/South Africa); Head of the Justice and Reconciliation in Africa
Programme at the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, South Africa and Extraordinary Professor of
African Studies, at the Centre for African Studies, University of the Free State, South Africa.
2017 Professor Rachid Tlemçani, (Algeria); Professor of Political Science at the University of Algiers. His
areas of expertise include state- and nation-building, democratisation and economic development in Africa
in general, and the Maghreb in particular.
2018 Professor Heidi Hudson (South Africa); Professor of International Relations and Dean of the Faculty
of the Humanities at the University of the Free State. She specialises in feminist security studies, with a
specific focus on Africa.
2019: Professor Eghosa E. Osaghae (Nigeria); Professor of Comparative Politics at the University of Ibadan.
His areas of expertise include ethnicity, federalism, governance, and state politics in Africa.
2020-2021 No Claude Ake Visiting Chair due to the COVID pandemic.
2022: Professor Kwesi Aning (Ghana); Director of Faculty of Academic Affairs & Research, Kofi Annan
International Peacekeeping Training Centre. His areas of expertise include peacekeeping, counterterrorism, West African security, and decolonizing research methodologies.
2023: Professor Shola Omotola (Nigeria); Professor of Political Science, Federal University Oye-Ekiti. His
areas of expertise include democratisation, governance, minority questions, security, and coups in Africa.
The Department for Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University
The Department of Peace and Conflict Research (DPCR) was established in 1971 to conduct peace research
and offer courses in peace and conflict studies. It is internationally recognised as a leading institution in
its field. At present, some 200–300 students are enrolled every academic year. Research is conducted in
several major areas of peace and conflict studies, and on a wide range of geographical regions and countries
across the globe. The Department also houses its own data collection programme, the internationally
renowned Uppsala Conflict Data Programme (UCDP).
The Nordic Africa Institute
The Nordic Africa Institute (NAI), founded in 1962, is a centre for research, documentation and
information on modern Africa in the Nordic region. Based in Uppsala, Sweden, the Institute is dedicated
to provide timely, critical and alternative research and analysis of Africa in the Nordic countries and to
strengthen the cooperation between African and Nordic researchers. The institute offers grants for Nordic
and African scholars and it has a unique library specialising on contemporary Africa within the field of
social sciences.
