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The other face of Africa An Afro-optimist view
Vincent Okele
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Agenda

• Africa - the cradle of civilisation
• African Knowledge systems
• Writing systems
• Mathematics
• Engineering/building technology
• Metallurgy
• Food processing
• General science
• Future perspective

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Africa - the cradle of civilisation

• Modern humanity originated in Africa
• First humans emerged in Africa - 200,000 years
  ago
• The kenyan-Ethiopian-Tanzanian region is the
  birthplace of modern humans
•  That other African  
• First entered Asia, Europe, Australia, the
  Americas, South Pacific Islands
• not as slaves but as master, in control of own
  destiny
• Black people created and sustained many of the
  worlds earliest and enduring civilizations
• Established the early kingdoms
• Dahomey - 1620
• Ashanti - 1670

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Africa - the cradle of civilisation
African - cradle of civilisation
Africas oldest boat
Location Dafuna, Nigeria Age 8,000
years Discovered 1987
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African Knowledge systems
Writing Systems

• Wide range of symbols and motifs for
  communicating ideas Concepts
• Material Parchment, papyrus, leather, skin,
  fabric, sand, clay Metal
• Examples
• Geez (Ethiopia)
• Meroitic (Nubia)
• Hieroglyphics (Egypt)
• Bamum (Cameroon)
• Vai (Liberia)
• Nsibidi (Nigeria/Cameroon)
• Ajimi (Nigeria/Niger)
• Adinkra pictographic system (Akan - Ghana/Ivory
  Coast)

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African Knowledge systems
Writing Systems
The Shumom writing system (Bamum, Cameroon)
Ethiopian Stenography