The 5th Africa Conference, organised by Hasan Kalyoncu University (HKU) in cooperation with the Africa Studies Application and Research Centre, the Development Studies Application and Research Centre, and the Migration, Population, Education and Employment Issues Application and Research Centre, was held face to face and online. The conference addressed topics such as Türkiye-Africa economic relations, international power rivalry in Africa, democratisation, development, migration and trade.
The conference, held at the HKU Law Amphitheatre, was attended by HKU Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Gül Rengin Küçükerdoğan, Dean of the HKU Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences (FEASS) Prof. Dr. Hanifi Aslan, Head of the FEASS Department of Political Science and International Relations Prof. Dr. Ahmet Keser, academics and students.
Stating his happiness and excitement at holding the fifth edition of the conference, which was launched through the great efforts of the late Dr. Kearan E. Uchehara, an HKU faculty member of Nigerian origin, Director of the Development Studies Application and Research Centre and FEASS Dean Prof. Dr. Hanifi Aslan gave a presentation titled “The Role of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in Africa’s Economic Development”.
Director of the Africa Studies Application and Research Centre Asst. Prof. Dr. Pelin Aliyev, in her presentation titled “Africa in the Age of Polycrisis”, drew attention to the challenges facing the African continent within the framework of the concept of “polycrisis”.
Director of the Migration, Population, Education and Employment Issues Application and Research Centre Prof. Dr. Cenker Korhan Demir focused on migration movements on the African continent in his presentation titled “Transnational Migration and Africa”.
Following the opening speeches, in the session moderated by Prof. Dr. Ahmet Keser, HKU Department of Political Science and International Relations faculty member Prof. Dr. Ercan Seyhan presented “The Phenomenon of Cross-Border and Organised Crime in West Africa”; HKU FEASS faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zeynep Köse presented “Climate Justice in Africa: Least Contribution, Greatest Impact”; Asst. Prof. Dr. Burçin Uluğ from the HKU Department of Political Science and International Relations and master’s student Pınar Okatan presented “China’s Africa Strategy: Dynamics, Opportunities and Challenges”; Gaziantep University Department of Business Administration faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ömer Faruk Rençber and doctoral student Gül Çelik presented “Financial Sustainability and Economic Performance: An Integrated Analysis with Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods”; and Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University undergraduate student Eren Yiğitoğlu presented on “The M23 (23 March) Movement”.
Within the scope of the conference, a total of six different panels were held, one of them face to face. In the panels, 38 researchers from 7 different countries and 18 different universities presented a total of 31 papers in three languages: Turkish, English and French.
