African indigenous knowledge and research
Date
2013-01
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
AOSIS Publishing
Abstract
This paper seeks to heighten awareness about the need to include indigenous knowledge in the design and implementation of research, particularly disability research, in Africa. It affirms the suitability of the Afrocentric paradigm in African research and argues the
necessity for an emancipatory and participatory type of research which values and includes indigenous knowledge and peoples. In the predominantly Western-oriented academic circles and investigations, the African voice is either sidelined or suppressed because indigenous knowledge and methods are often ignored or not taken seriously. This paper posits that to be meaningful and empowering, African-based research must, of necessity, include African thought and ideas from inception through completion to the implementation of policies arising from the research. In this way the work is both empowering and meaningful for context-specific lasting impact.
Description
Owusu-Ansah, F.E. & Mji, G. African indigenous knowledge and research. African Journal of Disability, 2(1): 1-5, doi: 10.4102/ajod.v3i2.76.
The original publication is available at http://www.ajod.org
The original publication is available at http://www.ajod.org
Keywords
Indigenous knowledge -- Africa, Disabilities -- Africa -- Research, Afrocentrism, Research -- Methodology, Ethnoscience -- Africa
Citation
Owusu-Ansah, F.E. & Mji, G. African indigenous knowledge and research. African Journal of Disability, 2(1): 1-5, doi: 10.4102/ajod.v3i2.76