School of Communication, Cinematic and Creative Arts

BIENNIAL AFRICAN ASSOCIATION FOR RHETORIC CONFERENCE

Theme: Rhetorical (Re)Invention of Africa in the 21st Century

The United States International University-Africa and the African Association for Rhetoric (AAR) have the pleasure to invite you to the above conference that will take place physically at USIU-Africa, Nairobi, Kenya on July 20-22, 2022 from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm EAT.

About AAR

The African Association for Rhetoric was established in 2007 as a non-profit organization, and is a body of scholars, rhetors and researchers who engage in interrogating the deployment of rhetoric and speech communication in political, social, cultural, judicial and deliberative contexts. The fundamental goal of the Association is to encourage rhetors and researchers in public speaking from all over Africa and different parts of the world to participate in rhetorical debates as they relate to democratic governance and other pertinent intersections that may be of interest to them.

The Association also seeks to promote scholarship in African Rhetoric. The Association’s activities include biennial conferences, occasional seminars and symposia. The Association’s main publications are: The African Journal of Rhetoric, and an online supplementary Journal, entitled: Balagha: African Rhetoric Quarterly.

The Association also seeks to award members, fellowships, and honorary fellowships to deserving orators and rhetorical practitioners who have responsibly deployed rhetoric in the public domain.

Conference Sub-Themes

1. Beyond Colonialism: Towards (Re)constructing a New Africa
2. Contemporary Media Rhetoric in Africa
3. Rhetoric and the Decolonization of Educational Curricula in Africa
4. Decolonizing Africa’s Political Rhetoric
5. Imaging Africa: Re-framing and Resisting Global Media’s Representation of Africa
6. Africa’s Public Policy: From Speech to Action
7. Rhetoric of African Agency: Citizenship and Ethics of participation
8. Rhetorical Leadership and Transformation in Africa
9. Reinventing Africa through Creative and Performing Arts
10. Rhetorical Transformation of Africa’s Electoral process
11. Africa in the Cinemas
12. Costs and Benefits: Africa as a site of Prosperity
13. Language, Representation and the (Re)invention of Africa

Registration Fees

• $250 - For International Participants
• $100 - For Participants from Africa
• $50 - Participants Daily Rate

Important Dates

• April 30, 2022 - Deadline for Abstract submission.
• May 15, 2022 - Notification of Acceptance.
• May 18, 2022 - Conference Registration Opens.
• July 18-19, 2022 - Pre-conference Workshop.
• July 20-22 - Conference Event.

Conference Contacts

• Dr. Rachel Diang'a (Host) – USIU-Africa
• Dr. Segun Igbe - Chair, AAR Steering Committee
• Dr. Omedi Ochieng' - Denison Univesity, USA
• Conference Email: aar2022@usiu.ac.ke