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Bayreuth International Graduate School of African Studies - BIGSAS

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Members

 BIGSAS has Members and Associated Members.

Members consist of the founding members of BIGSAS, a few additional and retired professors, and outstanding scholars from all faculties of the University of Bayreuth who hold a doctoral title and supervise Africa-related doctorates. The Steering Committee makes decisions concerning applications for membership at the suggestion of the Head of BIGSAS. The exact regulations of Membership are stated in §3 of the BIGSAS regulations (PDF).

Associated Members are scholars who are involved in the supervision of doctoral candidates. The prerequisite for associate membership is that a doctoral candidate must already be admitted to BIGSAS. Associate membership is limited to the duration of the supervision relationship.

Information for applicants

​Information for doctoral students applying to BIGSASHide

​If you are planning your application to BIGSAS, one of your very first steps should be to go through our list of Members in order to find out whether your planned research project is in line with their research interests. For each member, you can also take a look at the topics they are currently supervising or have supervised in the past. If you have found a suitable member (or several), you will need to contact them in order to discuss your planned project. Detailed information on how to apply to BIGSAS can be found HERE.

List of Members (alphabetically)

Member of BIGSAS Erdmute Alber

Prof. Dr Erdmute Alber

Email: erdmute.alber@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4121

Chair of

Social Anthropology

Research Interests

Political Anthropology, Anthropology of Childhood and Family

Further informations

Current supervisionHide
  • Ertlmaier, Sophia: "Education - Work - Having Children: Family Planning of Middle Class Women in Lagos, Nigeria"
  • Krauß, Rebekka: "Urban illiteracy in Bolivia"
  • Schild, Hannah Svea: "The Work of Bringing up Children. Parental Practices in Times of Uncertainty in East Africa."
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Abou Moumouni, Issifou: "Gouvernance de la sécurité au Bénin : les chasseurs néo-traditionnels dans le système sécuritaire"
  • Bochow, Astrid: "Intimität und Sexualität vor der Ehe. Werbung (courtship) und Werte im Wandel in Kumasi und Endwa (Ghana)"
  • Glover, Evam: "Polygyny Among the Middleclass in Ghana: An Anthropological Study of Urban Family Life"
  • Häberlein, Tabea: "Generationen-Bande. Ordnung, Praxis und Geschichte der Generationenbeziehungen bei den Lama (Kabiye) im nördlichen Togo"
  • Houngbedji, Gbeogni Mickael: "'Lehrjahre sind keine Herrenjahre': Die Bedingungen in der Ausbildung und der Umgang mit internationalen Normen und internen Verordnungen zu Kinderschutz bei Schneidern, Schweißern, Maurern und Eisenflechtern in Benin"
  • Kroeker, Lena: "'In between Life and Death' - HIV-Positive Women in Lesotho and their Obstetric Choices"
  • Mildner, Carsten: "DEAF-DEAF-DIFFERENT. ambiguities of being deaf in Benin"
  • Oldenburg, Silke: "À Goma on sait jamais...Jugend im ganz normalen Ausnahmezustand in Goma, DR Kongo"
  • Sarre, Joh: "'Some call it slum, we call it home!' Aushandlungen von Zugehörigkeit unter den nubischen Einwohner*innen Kib(e)ras, Kenia"
  • Ungruhe, Christian: "Lasten tragen, Moderne befördern. Wanderarbeit, Jugend, Erwachsenwerden und ihre geschlechtsspezifischen Differenzierungen in Ghana"
  • Ballo Guèdè, Fidèle Coffi: "'Ni pauvre ni riche': identité de classe moyenne ou construction sociale d'une appartence intermédiaire au Bénin?"
  • Irambeshya, Albert: "Social protection for elderly people in the context of rapidly ageing population in Rwanda"
Member of BIGSAS Eric Anchimbe

PD Dr Eric Anchimbe

Email: eric.anchimbe@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3571

Research Interests

Sociolinguistics, World Englishes, Pragmatics, Applied Linguistics, Political Discourse, Computer-mediated Communication

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Ahmad, Usman: "A Study of English-Hausa and Hausa-English Translations"
  • Otung, Glory Essien: "Power and Identity in Colonial Letters: The Case of Southwest Cameroon"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Oyali, Uchenna: "Bible Translation and Language Elaboration: The Igbo Experience"
  • Memunatu, Sheini: "Aspects of Dagombas' English"
Member of BIGSAS Susan Arndt

Prof. Dr Susan Arndt

Email: susan.arndt@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3551

Chair of

English Studies and Anglophone Literatures



Research Interests

Literary and Cultural Studies, Gender and Feminist Studies, Postcolonial Studies, Colonialism and Racism

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Assa, Shirin: "MENA Women in Diaspora: Poetics of Intersectional Resistance Versus Geometry of Appropriation"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Baas, Renzo
  • Dittmann, Julia: "Ent-Täuschung des weißen Blicks. Rassismussensible Strategien für eine ideologiekritische Filmanalyse"
  • Donsomsakulkij, Weeraya: "Towards A South African Literary "Post-Pastoralism": Alternative Environmentalism and Multispecies Narratives in Selected Post-Apartheid South African Literature"
  • Köppen, Grit: "Performative Künste in Äthiopien: Internationale Kulturbeziehungen und postkoloniale Artikulationen"
  • Muhammad, Dikko: "Female Voices in Northern Nigeria: An Exploration of Nature, Activism and Identity Politics in the Poetry of Nana Aishatu Ahmad, Angela Miri, and Maria Ajima"
  • Wachira, James: "Nar*Rating Environmentalisms: Non*Human in Figurations Knowledges on Conservation, Endangerment and Environmental Justice in Selected Kenyan Eco-narrative"
  • Yuan, Mingqing: "Kenya-China encounters in literary spaces: histories, presences and futures from the 1960's till the present"
  • Fulela, Brian: "Post-apartheid Subjectivities: Psychoanalysis and/in Place in the Novels of K. Sello Duiker, Kgebetle Moele and Sifoso Mzobe"
Member of BIGSAS Iris Clemens

Prof. Dr Iris Clemens

Email: iris.clemens@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 / 55-4128

Chair of

Educational Science



Research Interests

Processes of Globalization and World Society, Global Relations of the Emergence of Knowledge, Evolution of Ideas, Transformation of Knowledge and Education in the World Society

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Amutuhaire, Tibelius: "Internationalisation and academic mobility: Exploring Higher Education students’ mobility in Uganda"
  • Mulenga Wincierz, Mary: "Towards Theory Building: An Exploration of Experiences and Perceptions Associated with Youth Mentoring Practice in Southern Africa. A Grounded Theory Study in Zambia"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Serawit Bekele Debele

Dr Serawit Bekele Debele

Email: serawit.debele@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: + 49 (0) 921 55-5427

Research Interests

Religion and Politics in Africa, Sexuality, Intersectionality, Area/African Studies

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Alfakir, Jihad: "Queer and Intersectional Activism in Tunisia: The Mawjoudin Queer Film Festival"
  • Khalaf Allah, Samah: "Towards a History of Queer/Feminist 'Movement' in Sudan"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Martin Doevenspeck

Prof. Dr Martin Doevenspeck

Email: doevenspeck@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-2273

Chair of

Political Geography



Research Interests

Risk and Disasters, Society-environment Relations (Politics of Climate Change, Environmental Governance), Political Geography of Africa (Violent Conflict, Territoriality, Borders), Migration and Mobility

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Aclassato, Samba: "Analyse des enjeux et perspectives d'une politique d’immigration choisie au Canada. L’exemple du Québec « Immigrés subsahariens francophones – Quelles mobilités ? »"
  • Batano Kusimwa, Godelive: "Political Economy of Child Labour in Cobalt Artisanal Mining Zone of Kolwezi, DRC"
  • Hollstegge, Julian: "Geographies of border-making in South Sudan's southern borderlands"
  • Möller, Carsten: "Moving towards Power? Mobilities within Political Mobilization in Uganda, Kenya and Eastern DRC"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Bock, Stephan: "Translations of urban regulation within the relation of Kigali (Rwanda) and Singapore"
  • Donko, Kamal: "Territory, Identity and Local Politics in the Frontier Zone of Central Benin"
  • Gebauer, Claudia: "'Recently there were a lot of changes' - Translations of the 'Adaptation to Climate Change Paradigm' in Rwanda"
  • Janssen, Jaana: "Schaffung von Gemeinsamkeiten im Kontext kultureller Differenz - Sozialgeographische Perspektiven auf Prozesse von Vernetzung und Relationaler Integration somalischer Postmigranten in Deutschland und Finnland"
  • Kinyera, Paddy: "The Making of a Petro-state: Governmentality and Development Practice in Uganda's Albertine Graben"
  • Morisho, Nene: "A New Institutional Economics Approach to Cross Border Small Business: A Case Study of Goma/Gisenyi Border"
  • Muhire, Blaise: "Land, Power and Identity: The politics of scale and violent conflict in Masisi, DR Congo"
Member of BIGSAS Tim Dorlach

Junior Prof. Dr Tim Dorlach

Email: tim.dorlach@uni-bayreuth.de

Research Interests

Global Nutrition and Health Policy

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Wamahiu, Maryanne: "The Politics of Infant Formula Regulation: Kenya in Comparative Perspective"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Martina Drescher

Prof. Dr Martina Drescher

Email: martina.drescher@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3579

Chair of

Romance and General Linguistics



Research Interests

Health Communication, French in Africa and North America, Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis (also comparative), Language and Emotions

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Guadagnano, Laura: "Le discours moral dans le domaine de la santé sexuelle et reproductive des jeunes Ivoiriens. Une analyse pragmatico-discursive"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Drabo, Adama: "Marqueurs discursifs et pragmatèmes dans le français en Côte d’Ivoire. Une analyse empirique de dƐ, kƐ, tchô et toi aussi"
  • Mbaho Ngawa, Carline Liliane: "La vente des produits de santé dans les cars interurbains au Cameroun : une analyse interactionnelle"
  • Mellie, Didérot Djialla: "Sensibilisation contre le VIH/SIDA au Cameroun: Analyse sémiolinguistique des affiches"
  • Nganga, Simon: "Funeral Performances in Kenya: A Contribution to Communicative Genre Analysis"
  • Peem, Laure: "Traduire des textes sur le VIH et le sida en basaa : Cas des affiches et des dépliants"
  • El Hadari, Taha: "Research Synthesis: A Meta-Ethnography and Meta-Analysis of Sociolinguistic Research in Morocco"
Member of BIGSAS Ute Fendler

Prof. Dr Ute Fendler

Email: ute.fendler@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3567

Chair of

Romance Literary Studies and Comparative Literature

Research Interests

French and Francophone Literatures and Media (Film, Television) as well as Comparative Approaches to German/French, Francophone/Hispanophone Literatures and Film, Intercultural Communication, Intermedial Phenomena, Memory, Violence

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Boudjekeu Kamgang, Thierry: "Writing the Slave Trade Trauma in Francophone Africa: A Study of Selected Novels"
  • Sbaihi, Yousra: "The Cultural and Social Hermeneutics of Death in Morocco"
  • Tsogo Momo, Marie Nadege: "Le cinéma allemand au Cameroun d'Entre-Deux Guerres : Analyse d'un Révisionnisme colonial en images"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Brahima,  Abraham: "L'intraduisible en question. Problématique linguistique africaine et décolonisation conceptuelle, une lecture critique"
  • Dodounou, Tsevi: "Le mythe de l'Albinos dans les Récits Subsahariens Francophones"
  • El Maarouf, Moulay Driss: "The Local and Global Dynamics of Moroccan Music Festivals"
  • El Naggare, Maroua: "Enfances. De quelques recueils francophones de récits d'enfance"
  • Koto, Yawo: "L'environnementalisme en Afrique francophone. La représentation de l'environnement dans la littérature et le cinéma africains francophones au sud du Sahara"
  • Mbaye, Aminata: "Les discours sur l'homosexualité au Sénégal. L'analyse d'une lutte représentationnelle"
  • Mohamed, Ghousmane: "La perception du milieu naturel à travers la littérature orale Touareg Kel Aïr du Niger"
  • Ndi, Gilbert: "State/Society: Narrating Transformations in Selected African Novels"
  • Ndong, Louis: "Kulturtransfer in der Übersetzung von Literatur und Film am Beispiel von Semèbene Ousmanes Novelle Niiwam und deren Verfilmung Niiwam der lange Weg"
  • Nyada, Germain: "Kindheit, Autobiografik und Interkulturalität. Eine vergleichende Studie zu Kindheitstexten von Laye Camara, Elias Canetti, Jean-Martin Tchaptchet und Yusuf Yeşilöz"
  • Wandji Ngassa, Eudes Narcisse: "Cinéma et réinvention de l'imaginaire des cineastes Camerounais"
  • Benthami, Khadija: "Les récits d'enfance dans la littérature judéo-maghrébine"
  • Seye, Mbaye: "Senegalesische Filme in Mediascape: Mous Sène Absas Filme Madame Brouette und Yoolé"
Member of BIGSAS Britta Frede

Prof. Dr Britta Frede

Email: britta.frede@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3552

Research Interests

Translocal Relations and Global Interconnectedness of Muslim Africa (South-South) since 1800, Islamic Education, Islamic Popular Movements

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Chahdi, Nihal Ouazzani: "Trances in Translation: Towards an Ethical Turn in Translating 
    Alterity in the Moroccan Sufi Ritual al-ḍaḍra"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Joël Glasman

Prof. Dr Joël Glasman

Email: joel.glasman@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-464

Chair of

History with a focus on the History of Africa

Research Interests

Francophone West- and Central Africa in the Twentieth Century, particularly the History of the State, Science and Technology Studies (STS), and the History of Humanitarianism

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide


  • Frisch, Robin: The Social History of the Franc CFA. Monetary Transitions in Togo and Cameroun from the Mandate Period to Independence (1918-1960)"
  • Madhuku,  Perseverence: "Combating diseases in Frontier Zones: Measles Outbreaks and Vaccination Campaigns in Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe 1900-2010"
  • Wolfmeier, Darja: "Voices on race and power in the humanitarian sector. A critical historical sociology of Médecins Sans Frontières, c. 1990s to 2000s"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Nyabwengi, Catheline: "Women Fighters in Kenya; 1952-2019"
  • Edeagu, Ngozi: "Writing back to Empire: Newspapers, Non-Elites and Decolonisation in the Global Public Sphere, 1937-1957"
Member of BIGSAS Joerg Gundel

Prof. Dr Jörg Gundel

Email: joerg.gundel@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-6252

Chair of

Public Law, International and European Law

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Thalhammer, Veronika: "Möglichkeiten der Bindung transnationaler Unternehmen an Menschenrechte aus völkerrechtlicher Perspektive. Eine Untersuchung mit dem Fokus auf afrikanische Gaststaaten und deutsche Gesetzesinitiativen"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Owino, Robert: "International Environmental Law and Trans-boundary Resource Co-operation Frameworks in the Lake Victoria Basin: An Assessment of Effectiveness"
Member of BIGSAS Christine Hanke

Prof. Dr Christine Hanke

Email: christine.hanke@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4601

Chair of

Digital and Audiovisual Media

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Gerfelmeyer, Leah: "Die Colonial Commodities Kakao/Schokolade. Eine Auseinandersetzung mit den Entanglements zwischen den medialen Dispositiven der Materialien Kakao/Schokolade und der deutschen kolonialen Vergangenheit in Westafrika"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Andrew Harvey

Prof. Dr Andrew Harvey

Email: andrew.harvey@uni-bayreuth.de

Research Interests

Languages of the Tanzanian Rift

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
​Supervised and completed projectsHide
Member of BIGSAS Jana Hoenke

Prof. Dr Jana Hönke

Email: jana.hoenke@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4137

Chair of

Sociology of Africa

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Ndlovu, Patricia Pinky: "A Sociological Understanding of the Minibus-Taxi Industry in South Africa: Informality, Patriarchy and Violence"
  • Üner, Büsra: "The Creation of Environmental Movements with Feminist Alliances: Survival Mechanism of Rural Women"
  • Yang,  Yifan: "Frictional encounters? Governing and contesting Chinese industrial mining projects in Guinea"
​Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Thoko Kaime

Prof. Dr Thokozani Kaime

Email: thoko.kaime@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4336

Chair of

African Legal Studies

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Irakoze, Ange Dorine: "Combatting Illicit Financial Flows for Sustainable Development in East African Community (EAC): A Study Of Burundi Mining Laws and Lessons from United Republic Of Tanzania Mining Laws"
  • Mauluka, Gift Gawanani: "State obligations in addressing climate change-induced child labour: an investigation of child labour legal frameworks enforcement in Malawi and Ghana"
  • Zundel, Isabelle: "Claiming LGBTQI+ rights through the African human rights system – Analysis of normative and procedural frameworks"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Bild Kalfelis

Prof. Dr Melina Cassandra Kalfelis

Email: melina.kalfelis@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4133

Chair of

Social and Cultural Anthropology

Research Interests

Content will follow

Further Information

Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Current supervisionHide

None

Prof. Dr. Benjamin Kirby

Prof. Dr. Benjamin Kirby

Telefon: +49 (0)921 / 55-4160

E-Mail: benjamin.kirby@uni-bayreuth.de

Research Interests

Religion in African settings (and beyond), particularly Islam and Christianity, Religion and politics, Religion and economics, Infrastructure, Urban environments and processes, Globalisation, Conspiracy thinking, Ethnography, Self-presentation and everyday social interaction

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
None
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Franz Kogelmann

Dr Franz Kogelmann

Email: franz.kogelmann@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-5160

Research Interests

Current Islamic Movements, Islamic Law in Africa, Islamic Foundations (waqf), Islamism / Political Islam, Muslims in secular / partly Islamic Societies

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide

None

Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Ben Amara, Ramzi: "The Izala-movement in Nigeria: Its Split, Relationship to Sufis and Perception of the Sharia Re-Implementation"
  • Chembea, Suleiman: "Competing and Conflicting Power Dynamics in Waqfs in Kenya, 1900-2010"
  • Danfulani, Chikas: "The Re-implementation of Sharia in Northern Nigeria and the Education of Muslim Women 1999-2007"
  • El-Hassab, Ahmed: "Corporate Social Responsibility Conduct/Disclosure In the Experience of Sudanese Islamic Banks, 2008-2010"
  • Ibrahim, Musa: "Sharia implementation, filmmaking, and Muslim discourses: Analysis of contestations and negotiations between culamāɔ and Kannywood filmmakers in northern Nigeria"
  • Wario, Halkano: "Networking the Nomads: A Study of Tablīghī Jamācat among the Borana of Northern Kenya"
Bild Lee

Prof. Dr Jia Hui Lee

Email: jiahui.lee@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4232

Chair of

Science and Technology Studies of the Global South

Research Interests

Information is following

Further Information

Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Current supervisionHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Beate Lohnert

Prof. Dr Beate Lohnert

Email: beate.lohnert@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-2277

Chair of

Development Studies in Geography



Research Interests

Urban and Rural Environments, Town and Regional Planning (especially upgrading, low-cost housing, resettlement), Refugee and Migration Research, Integration Research, Social Dimensions of Global Environmental Change, Political Ecology, Conflict Mediation in Land Use,  Participatory Research, Teamwork and Team Management in Planning Processes

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Schwarz, Fabian: "Sustainable bioenergy and biofuel potentials from agricultural crops and residues in Uganda and Tanzania"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Arko, Benedict: "Translating Discourses of Local Economic Development: The Case of the Ghana Decent Work Programme"
  • Debelo, Asebe: "Conflicts, Narratives of Entitlement and Competing Views over Nech Sar National Park, Ethiopia"
  • Degenhart, Barbara: "Space - Food - Society: Changing Food Consumption Practices of the Emerging Urban Middle Class in Meqele, Ethiopia - A Relational Approach of Local Dynamics and Spatial Manifestations of Socio-Cultural Transformation Processes"
  • Flosbach, Johannes: "Financial Performance of Microfinance Institutions in Ghana and Uganda: Development and Application of the Achievement Stages Model"
  • Megento, Tebarek: "Inter-firm Relationships and Governance Structures. A study of the Ethiopian leather and leather products industry value chain"
  • Mekonnen, Mulugeta: "Transnational Migration-Development Nexus: The Engagement of Ethiopian Diaspora Associations Based in Germany"
  • Narh, Peter: "Negotiating behavioural change: regime interaction in environmental governance in Ghana"
  • Rudic, Christiane: "Housing finance strategies of informal settlement dwellers. Factors of influence and the impacts of planned interventions in Dar es Salaam"
  • Yajalin, John: "Internal Migration: Neighbourhood Associations and its Consequences on Political Participation in Urban Slums in Ghana"
Member of BIGSAS Cassandra Mark-Thiesen

Dr Cassandra Mark-Thiesen

Research Interests

African History

​Current supervisionHide
  • Ibanga, Edidiong Charles: "Mediating Womanhood in Liberia. History, memories and representations"
  • Schneider, Luisa: "Histories and Memories of Transatlantic Returning"
  • Dike, Deborah Nwadiuto: "A Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) of Twitter Memes used in Discourses around Nigeria’s Elections and Sociopolitics from 2015"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Susanne Muehleisen

Prof. Dr Susanne Mühleisen

Email: susanne.muehleisen@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3564 / - 63

Chair of

English Linguistics



Research Interests

Creole Studies, Sociolinguistics, Pragmatics, Translation Studies, Orality and Literacy, English Word Formation

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide

None

Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Ahmed, Umar: "Gender in Media Discourse: The Discursive Construction of Gender in Nigerian Newspapers"
  • Kamdem, Hector: "The Basic Narrative of National Unity and Peace in Cameroonian Political Speeches: A Discourse Analytical Perspective"
  • Kenne, Jocelyne: "Language and Interaction in the Chinese Community in Cameroon: A Sociolinguistic Profile"
  • Otundo-Künster, Billian: "Exploring Ethnically-Marked Varieties of Kenyan English: Intonation and Associated Attitudes"
  • Turner, Irina: "Businified Political Discourse on the State of the South African Nation: A Dialogue between Presidential Speeches and Newspaper Reports"
Member of BIGSAS Sabelo Ndlovu-Gatsheni

Prof. Dr Sabelo Ndlovu-Gatsheni

Email: sabelo.ndlovu-gatsheni@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4781

Research Interests

Epistemologies of the Global South, Decolonial Thought/Theory, History/Politics (South Africa & Zimbabwe), African History, African Politics, African Development, Empire, Colonialism, Decolonization, African/Black Radical Tradition, Rhodes Must Fall Movements, Decolonization of Knowledge and Universities, African Intellectuals

Further information

Current supervisionHide
  • Jahn, Eileen: "‘Ugesi Ngowethu’: Politics of Access to Electricity Networks in South Africa — A Case Study of the City of Johannesburg"
  • Mahlatsi, Malaika: "Women on the margins of African cities: An analysis of gendered geographies of gentrification in South Africa"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Stefan Ouma

Prof. Dr Stefan Ouma

Email: stefan.ouma@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-2262

Chair of

Economic Geography



Research Interests

Global Commodity Chains and Agricultural Transformations, Financialisation of Nature and Agriculture, Industry 4.0, Critical Logistics

Further Information

​​Current supervisionHide
  • Singo, Leiyo: "Tracing Visions of Socio-ecological Transformation and their Ethical Deliberation in Tanzania: The Case of Land Futures"
​Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Joschka Philipps

Dr Joschka Philipps

Email: joschka.philipps@uni-bayreuth.de

Research Interests

Political Conflicts, Transnational Politics, Postcolonial Studies, Conspiracy Theories, Urban Youth, Protest Movements in sub-Saharan Africa

Further Information

Current supervisionHide
  • Jima, Kingsley Celestine: "Politics of the Unknown Gunmen: Television Reporting on Banditry in North-west Nigeria"
  • Sagnane, Saïkou Oumar: "Unexpected Regime Change and Military Transition in the Republic of Guinea: Information Flow, Uncertainty and Ambiguity"
Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Elena Rettova

Prof. Dr. Alena Rettová

Email: alena.rettova@uni-bayreuth.de

Research Interests

Philosophy, German Studies, African Studies

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide

None

​Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Ivo Ritzer

Prof. Dr Ivo Ritzer

Email: ivo.ritzer@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3624

Chair of

Media in Africa



Research Interests

Media Aesthetics, Media Archaeology, Media Anthropology, Media and Cultural Globalization, Film and Television Theory, World Cinema, Transnational Cinema, New Media, Digital Media

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide


  • Kamel, Shaden: "Popular Facebook groups exclusively for women and women empowerment in Egypt"
  • Lembcke, Sophie: "Digitalisierung und Future Archives. Posthybride Perspektiven auf künstlerische Objektbefragungen im kolonialen Museum"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Moyo, Charles: "Icons of Zimbabwe's Crisis and their Interpretation by European Union Officials"
  • Ngum, Yvette: "Understanding Cultures and Identities in Cameroonian Cinema"
  • Ateh, Tafor: "Audience Response to Cameroonian Films: The Case of Nina's Dowry and Jungle of Heirs"
Member of BIGSAS Eberhard Rothfuss

Prof. Dr Eberhard Rothfuss

Email: eberhard.rothfuss@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-2278

Chair of

Social- and Population Geography



Research Interests

Pastoralism and Ethnic Tourism in Southern Africa, Afro-Brazilian Identity, Socio-spatial Urban Inequality (Favelas), Collective Governance, Critical (Southern) Theory, Intercultural Hermeneutics

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Gruber, Valerie: "Moral Geographies of (Re-)Existence: A Comparative Analysis of Socio-cultural Projects from Afro-descendant Communities in Salvador da Bahia (Brazil) and Cartagena de Indias (Colombia)"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Hansine, Rogers: "The intraurban dimension of reproductive choices variation in Maputo, Mozambique – a qualitative study"
Member of BIGSAS Cyrus Samimi

Prof. Dr Cyrus Samimi

Email: cyrus.samimi@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-2237

Chair of

Climatology

Research Interests

Climatology, Ecological Climatology, Biogeography, Agricultural Ecology, Remote Sensing, GIS

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide

None

Supervised and completed projectsHide

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Member of BIGSAS Katharina Schramm

Prof. Dr Katharina Schramm

Email: katharina.schramm@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4170

Chair of

Social and Cultural Anthropology

Research Interests

Anthropology of Global Inequalities

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Isler, Danielle Audrey: "Black People and Whitened Spaces in Cape Town, South Africa: Constructions, In/Compatibilities and Reactions to Exclusions"
  • Naumann, Lena: "New Sacred Art – Das Gesamtwerk Susanne Wengers im Kontext der nigerianischen Moderne"Schaumann, Eleanor: "Tracing Karakul in Postcolonial Practices and Landscapes"
  • Sharma, Mihir: "Black Lives Matter: Emerging Forms and Subjectivities of Activism in St. Louis, Missouri"
​Supervised and completed projectsHide

None

Member of BIGSAS Rüdiger Seesemann

Prof. Dr Rüdiger Seesemann

Email: ruediger.seesemann@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3553 / - 5432

Chair of

Islamic Studies



Research Interests

Sufism, Islam and Modernity, Islam and Politics, Islamism, Islamic Education, Islamic Knowledge, Religion in Africa

Further Information

​​Current supervisionHide

None

Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Ayong, Ahmed: "Traditional Islamic Scholarly Culture in Northern Cameroon, 1900 to the Present"
  • Hanif, Mohammad: "Debating Sufism: The Tijāniyya and its Opponents"
  • Issaka-Toure, Fulera: "Islamic Construction of Gender in Accra: The Role of Islamic Religious Authorities in Mediating Marital Conflicts"
Member of BIGSAS Valentina Serreli

Prof. Dr Valentina Serreli

Email: valentina.serreli@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3554

Chair of

Arabic Linguistics

Research Interests

Arabic Sociolinguistics, Language Attitudes and Ideologies, Language and Identity, Multilingualism and Language Contact

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Essam Farag, Hasnaa: "Style and Gender Performance in Arabic Fiction and Media"
​Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Idhssaine, Abdellah: "Moroccan Language Policy and the Amazigh Language Revitalization"
Member of BIGSAS Gabriele Sommer

Prof. Dr Gabriele Sommer

Email: gabriele.sommer@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3557

Chair of

African Linguistics I

Research Interests

Areal Linguistics, Contact Linguistics, Languages and Societies in Africa

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide

None

Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Boutché, Jean: "Fula spoken in the city of Maroua (Northern Cameroon). A sociolinguistic insight into its use by non-ethnic speakers"
  • de Haas, Ricarda: "Spoken Word Goes Digital. Performance Poetry und Social Media in Harare (SIMBABWE) und Johannesburg (SÜDAFRIKA). Eine gendersensible Analyse"
  • Esene Agwara, Angiachi Demetris: "Assessing Rural Multilingualism in Lower Bafut, North West Region of Cameroon"
Member of BIGSAS Eva Spies

Prof. Dr Eva Spies

Email: eva.spies@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4150

Chair of

Study of Religion



Research Interests

Christianity in Africa, Religious Diversity, Public Religion, Death and Personhood, as well as the connections between Development Cooperation, Moral Knowledge, and Religion

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Osei-Tutu, Isaac: "Entrepreneurship and Prosperity Gospel. A Business and Corporate Ethical Perspective on Neo-Pentecostal/Charismatic Economy in Ghana"
  • Rhissa Achaffert, Hamissou: "Penser et faire le développement au Niger : Le rôle des acteurs islamiques locaux"
  • Seyni Mamoudou, Ibrahim: "Gouvernance de la pluralité religieuse au Niger : rôles des associations interreligieuses"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Balogun, Adeyemi: "Being a 'Good Muslim': The Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria (MSSN), Islamic Reform and Religious Change in Yorubaland, 1954 and 2014"
Member of BIGSAS David Stadelmann

Prof. Dr David Stadelmann

Email: david.stadelmann@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-6077

Chair of

Development Economics

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Wild, Frederik: "Four Essays in Development Economics and Regional Economic Integration"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Frempong, Raymond: "Three Essays in Development Economics"
Member of BIGSAS Alexander Stroh-Steckelberg

Prof. Dr Alexander Stroh-Steckelberg

Email: alexander.stroh@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-4185

Chair of

African Politics and Development Policy



Research Interests

Comparative Democratization, Formal and Informal Institutions, Political Role of Constitutional Jurisdictions, Political Parties/Party Systems/Elections

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide
  • Alar, Julião: "Managing party loyalty in violent elections: Comparing the municipalities of Beira, Quelimane, and Tete in Mozambique"
  • Kisakye, Diana: "Judges as agents of regional integration: A relational analysis of judicial networks in African regional courts"
  • Wüst, Andreas: "Kulturpolitik in Tunesien, Marokko und Mali nach dem Arabischen Frühling – Förderinstrument für Stabilität?"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Agbele, Fortune: "To Vote or Not to Vote: Understanding the Ghanaian Voter"
  • Bonkat, Lohna: "Surviving in a Conflict Environment: Market Women and Changing Socioeconomic Relations in Jos, Nigeria - 2001-2010
  • Saibu, Ghadafi: "Political Parties, Violent Youth and Electoral Insecurity"
  • Woldegiorgis, Emnet: "Regionalization of Higher Education in Africa and the Operationalization of the African Union Higher Education Harmonization Strategy"
Member of BIGSAS Clarissa Vierke

Prof. Dr Clarissa Vierke

Email: clarissa.vierke@uni-bayreuth.de

Phone: +49 (0) 921 55-3550

Chair of

Literatures in African Languages



Research Interests

Swahili Literature and Popular Culture, Poetics/Rhetoric, Manuscript Cultures, Orality and Literacy, Swahili Intellectual History, Literature in Multilingual Contexts, African History of Science

Further Information

​Current supervisionHide


  • Böllinger, Sarah: "Das Behinderte Kunstwerk – in den Sammlungen des Iwalewahaus"
  • Tarrant, Duncan: "Zanzibari Swahili Poetic Imaginaries and Networks"
Supervised and completed projectsHide
  • Minerba, Emiliano: "Historical-comparative analysis of the Swahili and Wolof metrical systems"
  • Raia, Annachiara: "The Utendi wa Yusufu. A Critical Edition of the Swahili Poem of Yusuf and a Study of its Adaptation at the Swahili Coast"
  • Dr. Nikitta Dede Adjirakor: "I Go for the Vibe': Hip-hop and Spoken Word as Aesthetic Practices in Dar es Salaam"
  • Ajayi, Oladapo: "Fuji Lyrics and Everyday life in the Contemporary Yoruba Urban Space"

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