MA student Afomiya Ayalew, studying Global African Studies at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University, represented the university at the Young Cultural Diplomacy Forum (YCDF) Bali 2025, held from December 17 to 21, 2025, where she presented her working paper within a global dialogue on culture and diplomacy.
Her paper, titled “Beyond the ‘Post’: Coloniality, Sovereignty, and Global South Futures,” interrogates the enduring myth that the formal end of colonial administrations constituted a historical rupture ushering Africa and the wider Global South into a genuinely “postcolonial” era. Reflecting on her research, Afomiya said, “By tracing the continuity of colonial domination alongside emerging forms of agency, my work situates Africa within broader Global South struggles over sovereignty, identity, and cooperation.”
The paper advances a forward-looking synthesis grounded in epistemic decolonization and strategic South–South cooperation, reframing decolonization as a continuous project of world-making rather than a completed historical event. Building on her background in Political Science and International Relations, Afomiya examines regional integration, global realignments, and strategic diplomacy, with particular attention to Ethiopia’s evolving role in regional and global affairs. Through her research, she aims to inform policymaking and diplomatic practice that strengthens Africa’s agency in international relations.
Afomiya is part of the Fall 2024 cohort of the MA in Global African Studies, a program designed to equip students with interdisciplinary tools to address complex political, cultural, and social issues affecting Africa and its engagements with the wider world.
MA student Afomiya Ayalew, studying Global African Studies at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University, represented the university at the Young Cultural Diplomacy Forum (YCDF) Bali 2025, held from December 17 to 21, 2025, where she presented her working paper within a global dialogue on culture and diplomacy.
MA student Afomiya Ayalew, studying Global African Studies at The Africa Institute, Global Studies University, represented the university at the Young Cultural Diplomacy Forum (YCDF) Bali 2025, held from December 17 to 21, 2025, where she presented her working paper within a global dialogue on culture and diplomacy.
Her paper, titled “Beyond the ‘Post’: Coloniality, Sovereignty, and Global South Futures,” interrogates the enduring myth that the formal end of colonial administrations constituted a historical rupture ushering Africa and the wider Global South into a genuinely “postcolonial” era. Reflecting on her research, Afomiya said, “By tracing the continuity of colonial domination alongside emerging forms of agency, my work situates Africa within broader Global South struggles over sovereignty, identity, and cooperation.”
The paper advances a forward-looking synthesis grounded in epistemic decolonization and strategic South–South cooperation, reframing decolonization as a continuous project of world-making rather than a completed historical event. Building on her background in Political Science and International Relations, Afomiya examines regional integration, global realignments, and strategic diplomacy, with particular attention to Ethiopia’s evolving role in regional and global affairs. Through her research, she aims to inform policymaking and diplomatic practice that strengthens Africa’s agency in international relations.
Afomiya is part of the Fall 2024 cohort of the MA in Global African Studies, a program designed to equip students with interdisciplinary tools to address complex political, cultural, and social issues affecting Africa and its engagements with the wider world.
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