African Repository, the Way to Share African Knowledge?

Background context: Knowledge society is a term associated with the Western Society. In literature no information could have been found that Knowledge Society refers to indigenous knowledge from traditional societies in... [ view full abstract ]

Background context: Knowledge society is a term associated with the Western Society. In literature no information could have been found that Knowledge Society refers to indigenous knowledge from traditional societies in developing countries. Justification of the research: The UNESCO (2005) definition of Knowledge Society as “[E]very society has its own knowledge assets. It is therefore necessary to work towards connecting the forms of knowledge that societies already possess and the new forms of development, acquisition and spread of knowledge valued by the knowledge economy model” allows to widen the view and to incorporate the indigenous knowledge available in societies for generations and to build on that for further developments within traditional societies. Aim: This research will explore how national repositories in African countries could be aggregated towards an African Repository that represents all African countries and knowledge from various peoples in their local languages as well as in international languages that Africans with different cultural backgrounds can have access to this specific knowledge. Methods/Approach: This research is designed as a qualitative research based on a literature study and discussions with academics from around the globe in order to find an answer to the research question: How can Africans develop their societies and economies based on indigenous knowledge towards an African Knowledge Society. The research will bend the arrow from knowledge as public good to knowledge as capital/asset of people and peoples and stretch further to knowledge transformation from purpose into means. The structure of the paper will commence in Chapter 1 with a clarification of an African Knowledge Society. Findings/results: Chapter 2 will discuss the value of an African Repository to store the African indigenous knowledge and its management towards sustainability. Chapter 3 will focus on the accessibility of African indigenous knowledge for Africans and non-Africans stored in the African Repository. Conclusion: The final chapter will conclude with the value of an African Repository for African peoples and the global society.

Keywords: African Repository, African Knowledge Society, indigenous Knowledge