Conference 'General Labour History of Africa'

Conference, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 11-12 December 2013

Date: 11 December 2013 to 12 December 2013
Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The first Authors’ Meeting for Volume II (1900-2000) of The General Labour History of Africa project will take place from 11-12 December 2013, in the Intercontinental Hotel, Kazanchis, Addis Ababa (Ethiopia).

Background

The aim of the General Labour History of Africa project is to gather together experts on African labour history and Africa labour studies to analyse labour history in Africa in a “general” way, while at the same time, as far as possible, being comprehensive in geographical, historical and sectorial terms. The project comprises four conferences and a two volumes history book.

The first conference will take place in Addis Ababa under the auspices of the ILO Africa Office. The GLHA project will: i) gather together Africanist historians and labour historians; ii) create a new “field of attention” represented by labour history in Africa; iii) become the focal point for wider research and discussion on labour in Africa and further stimulate intellectual exchanges between Africa experts and experts on labour specialised in other regions of the worlds (transnational perspective) and/or different sectors and/or different historical periods and/or from different theoretical schools; iv) find new definitions of labour, workers, slaves, unpaid work, household/family work etc. that would fit the Sub-Saharan Africa experience, and that would not simply represent a transfer of European definitions to the African continent.

Programme

Day one, 11 December 2013

10:00-11:00 Opening
Opening remarks by Cynthia Samuel-Olonjuwon (ILO)

11:00-11:30 Coffee break

11:30-12:30 General introduction by Stefano Bellucci

12:30-13:30 Lunch break

13:30-15:30 First round of presentations

Andreas Eckert (Humboldt University of Berlin), Forms of Wage Labour in Different Economic Sectors
Hanan Sabea (American University of Cairo), Agriculture/Agro-business
Carolyn Brown (Rutgers University), Mining Labour
Stefano Bellucci (International Institute of Social History), Transport
Patrick Neveling (University of Bern), Industry/Manufacture
15:30-16:00 Coffee break

16:00-18:00 Second round of presentations

Babacar Fall (Cheikh Anta Diop University), Forms of Forced Labour
Ugo Nwokeji (University of California, Berkley), Contemporary forms of Slavery
Shiferaw Bekele (Addis Ababa University), Indenture Labour
Samuel Nyanchoga (Catholic University of Eastern Kenya in Nairobi), Mutualistic, Associational and Cooperative Labour
Bill Freund (University of KwaZulu-Natal), African Trade Unions

20:00 Dinner at Yod Abyssinia, Cap Verde Street, Addis Ababa

Day two, 12 December 2013

09:00-10:30 Third round of presentations

Akua Britwum (University of Cape Coast), State and Labour: Development of labour ministries, labour legislations, statistical activities, etc.
Dmitri van den Bersselaar (University of Liverpool), Civil Servants: Colonial and Post-Colonial
Valentine Kikafunda (Kabale University), Labour and International Organisations
Ibikunle Tijani (Adeleke University Ede), The Role of the ILO in Shaping Labour Relations in Africa (1919-2019)

10:30-11:00 Break

11:00-13:00 Forth round of presentations

Gareth Austin (Graduate Insitute of Geneva), The African Bourgeoisie and Capitalists
Rory Pilossof (University of Pretoria), Professionals
Sara Berry (John Hopkins University ,in absentia), Entrepreneurs
Andreas Admasie (University of Basel), Labour in Entertainment: Tourism, Film, Sport
Deborah Bryceson (University of Glasgow), Modern Forms of Domestic Work

13:00-14:00 Lunch break

14:00-15:00 Fifth round of presentations

Ndalilah Joseph (University of Kabianga), Migrant Labour: Both Within and Outside Africa
Anthonia Akhidenor (Edo State Government), Foreign Migrations to Africa
Hannan Hammad (Christian University of Texas); Stefano Bellucci (International Institute of Social History), Social Welfare Implementation: Pension, Security, Safety and Health

15:00-15:30 Break

15:30-17:00 Sixth round of presentations

Franco Barchiesi (Ohio State University), Informal/Precarious Labour: Urban and Rural/Farms
Laurent Fourchard (Science Po Bordeaux, in absentia), Organised and Petty Crime/Illegal Labour
Michelle Moyd (Indiana University, in absentia); Joel Glasman (University of Missouri-St. Louis), Labour in Military, Police and Private Security/Mercenaries
Ibrahim Abdullah (Fourah Bay College), Child Labour: Child Soldiers, Child Trafficking, Pawnship, Child Debt Labour

17:00-17:30 Break

17:30-19:00 Final debate

Contact

Stefano Bellucci (International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam): sbe@iisg.nl
Andreas Admasie (International Institute of Social History, Addis Ababa): andreas.admasie@iisg.nl

http://socialhistory.org/en/events/conference-general-labour-history-africa