Working Towards Collaborations in the Teaching and Development of African Languages for Harnessing Indigenous Knowledge

While the importance of taking deliberate steps aimed at ensuring improved living standards is widely appreciated, less attention is given to the question of the numbers enjoying the upgraded standards. Consequently, in many developing nations, the majority of citizens live in abject poverty. Indeed, the divide between the developed and developing countries is best expressed in the quality of life that obtains in these two sets of countries. Further, success in engaging the masses and involving them in striving for development calls for an understanding of the local environment. It is in this context that indigenous knowledge becomes critical and issues of indigenous languages assume centrality. In order for African languages to play their rightful role in the continent’s development, they must be empowered. This, therefore, calls for concerted efforts in the development of African languages. This paper explores the role of collaborations both regionally and internationally in the teaching, research and development of African languages. Using Swahili as an example, it discusses how well-crafted collaborations between universities and other relevant stakeholders can contribute in the teaching and development of African languages to enable their continued use in harnessing indigenous knowledge for development. It concludes that there are several opportunities for innovation in developing collaborations that in turn have the capacity to develop African languages for driving the development agenda in Africa.