From 13 to 20 December 2021, a second international conference took place online as part of the “Innovative Africa: Educational Networking Programs for Human Resource Development in Africa’s SDGs (IAfP: Innovative Africa Program)”, which Kyoto University and the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies have jointly hosted since 2020.
The 2nd International Joint Conference included a poster session, comprised of an exhibition on the conference portal from 13 to 20 December and a core time in SpatialChat on the 17th, when the presenters — twelve students from five universities in four countries — engaged in a lively discussion with attendees.
The final day, 20 December, featured oral presentations, delivered on Zoom by nineteen students in five sessions. The students represented nine universities in eight countries: Kyoto University and the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan; the University of Yaoundé 1, Cameroon; the University of Botswana; the University of Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Cairo University, Egypt; the University of Zambia; Rhodes University, South Africa; and Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. With a total of forty participants from nine universities in eleven countries, the day’s program began with remarks from Professor Motoki Takahashi, director of the Center for African Area Studies (CAAS), and addressed a wide variety of research topics related to SDGs in Africa, each presentation sparking a spirited discussion involving the commentator, a faculty member specializing in a related field.
The fifth session was followed by a closing ceremony, which also marked the conclusion of the three-month Kyoto–Africa IAfP Short-Term Online Course. Professor Masayoshi Shigeta, dean of the Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies (ASAFAS), delivered closing remarks, after which completion certificates for the online course and presentation awards for each conference session were presented, bringing the event to a successful conclusion.
