Recent event in the USA has the world bewildered , where a politician is allowed to destroy the scientific and scholar community without recourse ,even people careers. should all programs be made to assist Africa countries be redomiciled in AFRICA .
Short Answer:
Yes, there is a strong case for relocating such programs to Africa or the Global South. The current model no longer aligns with the principle of empowering the South from within; instead, it often reproduces structural dependency, both administratively and epistemologically.
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Anthropological and Political Perspective:
1. A Deviation from the Original Purpose:
While the J-1 program is designed to facilitate knowledge transfer from the Global North to the Global South, in practice:
It subjects scholars from LMICs to exclusionary visa systems.
It reinforces the idea that scientific legitimacy is centered in the United States, perpetuating Western epistemic authority.
2. A Practical and Ethical Alternative:
These programs can and should be hosted by African academic institutions or regional research hubs with international affiliations.
Centers of scientific excellence could be established in Africa, producing globally recognized work while operating under local leadership.
Funding may still come from major actors (e.g., NIH, EU), but implementation and intellectual ownership should rest in the South.
3. Impact of Redomiciling:
It would reduce brain drain.
It would promote scientific sovereignty and contextual relevance.
It would help restructure North–South relationships from teacher–student dynamics to equal partnerships.
4. Acknowledging the Barriers:
Financial control still lies largely in the Global North.
Infrastructure and research governance in some African institutions require strengthening.
Global academic recognition remains biased toward Western institutions