I am Mikiko Nishimura, appointed as the fourth President of the Japan Society for African Educational Research at the 35th bi-annual conference in April 2025.
The Society became the Japan Society for African Educational Research in 2019 from the African Education Research Forum, which was run by a small group of people. This reflects the desire of the senior members to support the younger generation of researchers in African educational research, and their willingness to work together to make the participatory style, where all participants listen to the presentations of all presenters, the new form of the conference. The Society has a culture reflecting a famous African proverb: "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others".
Oral presentations in either English or Japanese include both research results and proposals at the conceptual stage of research. Through repeated presentations at the conference, many postgraduate students have seen their research transform into interdisciplinary and challenging research as they progress through the Masters and Ph.D. programmes. Many international students from Africa and elsewhere also participate. Although it is a small conference, a lot of research has been conducted on how education has been nurtured and achieved in the rich culture and history of Africa, and how it has been utilised in people's lives, with some implications for Japan. I would like to make an effort to bring together knowledge on interdisciplinary and cross-regional issues in a participatory conference.
In an era of great change in world affairs, it is said that the African population will soon account for more than thirty percent of the world's population. It is no exaggeration to say that understanding education in Africa will lead to predicting the future of the world. We look forward to welcoming researchers, practitioners and policy makers interested in the field of education in Africa to join the Japan Society for African Educational Research.
Mikiko Nishimura, 4th President of the Japan Society for African Educational Research