University of Nairobi to Launch African Center for Study of United States

The University of Nairobi (UoN) is set to launch the African Centre for the Study of the United States of America (ACSUS). 

Billed as a definitive hub for African-generated knowledge of the US, the centre will formally be opened on November 10th, according to the Chairperson of the Department of Diplomacy and International Studies at UoN Dr. Patrick Maluki. Maluki said the launch of the centre is a step forward for Kenyans in their quest to have a deeper understanding of the US.

“Kenya, just like any other society, is curious in understanding other societies outside its borders,” Maluki said on Monday.

ACSUS is designed to build extensive, multi and interdisciplinary, incisive, and cutting-edge perspectives on the US while availing opportunities to probe topics such as the USA’s political diplomacy, internal dynamics, diaspora matters, and its place as a world superpower.

The centre, which will be guided by the current University of Nairobi People Policy, will provide information about American businesses, culture, arts among other issues. It will also play a major role in promoting Kenya-US bilateral relations.

In addition, the centre is expected to work towards promoting Kenya’s capital Nairobi, and its diplomatic appeal. Maluki said the centre will be instrumental in positioning Nairobi as the most suitable location to host the next Sister Cities International Conference in 2024 after the Johannesburg summit next year.

“Nairobi will be competing with the city of Casablanca in Morocco and Acra in Ghana. Nairobi is a resource that needs to be harnessed and this is why the university exists. So that it can bring out some of these issues so that they can inform policy,” he added.

Sister Cities International was created at President Eisenhower’s 1956 White House conference on citizen diplomacy.