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GRADUATE CONFERENCE 2026

The Africa Multiple Research Cluster (AMRC)-UNILAG Graduate Workshop in African Studies was held from 12 to 14 August 2026 at the Arthur Mbanefo Digital Research Centre, University of Lagos, Akoka, bringing together doctoral candidates and early-career researchers for three days of intensive academic engagement, scholarly exchange, research presentations, and cultural exploration.

Organised through the Africa Multiple Research Cluster at the University of Lagos, with significant involvement from the Institute of African and Diaspora Studies (IADS), University of Lagos, the workshop was designed to support emerging scholars as they navigate the intellectual, theoretical, methodological, and practical demands of research in African Studies.

The workshop created a platform for participants to engage critically with contemporary questions concerning Africa and its diaspora while exposing them to different approaches to research across the humanities and social sciences. Through keynote presentations, methodological and theoretical sessions, research presentations, question-and-answer sessions, and opportunities for scholarly interaction.

The programme encouraged participants to refine their research ideas and situate their work within wider debates in African scholarship.

The opening session featured a welcome address by Research Prof. Dr. Ayodele Yusuff, Director of AMRC-UNILAG, who welcomed participants and set the tone for the three-day academic engagement. Research Prof. Dr. Kayode Eesuola, Head of Research at the Institute of African and Diaspora Studies and Chairman of the 2026 AMRC-UNILAG Graduate Workshop, subsequently introduced the idea and objectives of the workshop.

Participants were also introduced to research activities at the University of Lagos by Prof. Dr. Mathew Ilori, while Dr. Abisoye Eleshin facilitated a session designed to help participants become acquainted with one another and establish connections within the workshop community.

For IADS, the workshop also reflects the Institute’s broader commitment to developing research capacity and fostering intellectual exchange. Through its work across areas including Diaspora and Global Africa; Governance and Financial Integrity; Gender, Culture and Identity; Peace and Conflict; Environment, Urbanisation and Population Studies; Migrations and Cross-Border Relations; and Reparation, the Institute continues to contribute to multidisciplinary approaches to understanding Africa and its diaspora.
 

The Institute of African and Diaspora Studies congratulates the organisers, facilitators, presenters, doctoral candidates, early-career researchers, and participants whose collective contributions made the AMRC-UNILAG Graduate Workshop 2026 a meaningful and intellectually enriching engagement.

The workshop stands as an important contribution to the continuing development of African scholarship and to the shared goal of building a new generation of researchers equipped to produce rigorous, relevant, and Africa-centred knowledge.