Numéro

Vol. 23 No 1 (2025): Revue de l’enseignement supérieur en Afrique : Numéro spécial sur Décoloniser la production des savoirs dans les sciences humaines, les sciences sociales et les arts

From the Ground Up

An Autobiographical Reflection of Sol Plaatje University’s First Decade
https://doi.org/10.57054/jhea.v23i1.6496
Jesmael Mataga

Corresponding Author(s) : Jesmael Mataga

Jesmael.Mataga@spu.ac.za

Revue de l’enseignement supérieur en Afrique, Vol. 23 No 1 (2025): Revue de l’enseignement supérieur en Afrique : Numéro spécial sur Décoloniser la production des savoirs dans les sciences humaines, les sciences sociales et les arts

Résumé

Que signifie et qu’implique la création d’une nouvelle université dans le contexte de l’Afrique australe post-indépendance et post-1994 ? Quels facteurs historiques, structurels, politiques et subjectifs façonnent une telle entreprise à une époque où les universités font l’objet d’un examen critique croissant et où leur rôle social est réinterrogé ? Cet article propose une réflexion autobiographique et réflexive sur la première décennie de l’Université Sol Plaatje (SPU) à Kimberley (2014-2025), en examinant les dynamiques institutionnelles qui ont présidé à la création d’une nouvelle université dans l’Afrique australe post-indépendance. L’émergence de la SPU a coïncidé avec l’intensification des débats sur la finalité de l’enseignement supérieur et des appels à la décolonisation des universités dans la région, notamment à la suite des mouvements #FeesMustFall et #RhodesMustFall. Inscrite dans ce moment historique particulier, la première décennie de la SPU offre un éclairage sur les efforts visant à rendre l’enseignement supérieur davantage adapté aux besoins des sociétés africaines post-indépendance. Sans proposer une histoire institutionnelle exhaustive de l’université, l’article analyse certaines réponses aux appels à la décolonisation dans les sciences humaines et sociales. Il soutient que la SPU constitue un cas d’étude important pour comprendre les complexités de la réforme de l’enseignement supérieur, de la transformation institutionnelle et de la quête de systèmes éducatifs plus inclusifs et épistémiquement transformateurs en Afrique post-indépendance.

Mots-clés

mouvements « fallistes » dynamiques institutionnelles complexité de l’enseignement supérieur décolonisation systèmes éducatifs transformateurs pertinence avenir des universités africaines
Mataga, J. (2026). From the Ground Up: An Autobiographical Reflection of Sol Plaatje University’s First Decade. Revue De l’enseignement supérieur En Afrique, 23(1), 143–160. https://doi.org/10.57054/jhea.v23i1.6496
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Biographie de l'auteur

Jesmael Mataga

Associate Professor, Museum and Heritage Studies, Sol Plaatje University, Kimberly, South Africa.

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