The Black Atlantic as reversal: a reappraisal of African and black theology

In this article, I will try to do three things. Firstly, pay attention to the notion of Black Atlantic as coined by Paul Gilroy, which in effect could signify a reversal of colonialism and slavery. Secondly, revisit the 1970s and the debate about the relevance of Black theology vis-à-vis African theology, using John Mbiti’s article ‘An African Views American Black Theology’ as entry point. Here, I will discuss contributions also made by Desmond Tutu and James Cone. Thirdly, starting with the premise that both theologies are relevant and soul mates today, which would (probably) be confirmed by all the above mentioned at this point in time, an assessment of current voices will be made, that is, Tinyiko Maluleke and Vuyani Vellem on black and African ecclesiologies from a South African perspective, and Lawrence Burnley on the fate of the Black Church in the United States

An Assessment of the Contribution of Youth SMEs to the Economy of Igembe South Sub-County

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to assess the contribution of youth-owned Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to the economy of Igembe South Sub-county, Kenya, focusing on the prevalence, economic impact, and challenges faced by youth entrepreneurs. Methodology: The study adopted a descriptive research design and used a stratified random sampling technique to select 200 youth entrepreneurs from various sectors in Igembe South Sub-county. Data was collected using structured questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS and Excel for both qualitative and quantitative data. Results: The study found that youth SMEs in Igembe South play a significant role in job creation, with most businesses employing 1-5 staff. Key sectors include M-Pesa, retail (Mitumba), and hospitality. The majority of businesses are relatively new, with 37% in operation for less than 2 years. Most entrepreneurs started with capital between Ksh. 50,000-100,000 and reported profit margins of Ksh. 10,000-15,000. However, youth SMEs face challenges such as over-taxation, limited government support, lack of resources, and outdated technology, which hinder their growth potential. Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice, and Policy: This study contributes to the understanding of the role of youth SMEs in local economic development, emphasizing their potential in job creation and economic empowerment. It provides policy recommendations for the Kenyan government to enhance support for youth entrepreneurship through tax reforms, better access to funding, and targeted training. The study highlights the need for more effective government programs to address the challenges faced by youth SMEs in Igembe South and similar regions

Taking up the cudgels against gay rights? Trends and trajectories in African Christian theologies on homosexuality

Against the background of the HIV epidemic and the intense public controversy on homosexuality in African societies, this article investigates the discourses of academic African Christian theologians on homosexuality. Distinguishing some major strands in African theology, that is, inculturation, liberation, women’s and reconstruction theology, the article examines how the central concepts of culture, liberation, justice, and human rights function in these discourses. On the basis of a qualitative analysis of a large number of publications, the article shows that stances of African theologians are varying from silence and rejection to acceptance. Although many African theologians have taken up the cudgels against gay rights, some “dissident voices” break the taboo and develop more inclusive concepts of African identity and African Christianity

ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND STRUCTURE AS DETERMINANTS OF SERVICE DELIVERY IN THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT OF KITUI

Purpose: In early years of the 21st Century, Kenya started a journey of developing a new constitution which established the devolved system of government to improve on governance gaps. Since the introduction of devolution, County governments have introduced new organizational culture and structures which assist in service delivery. Consequent to this development, the objective of the study was to determine the influence of organizational culture and structure on service delivery in the County Government of Kitui and specific objectives of the study were to establish the influence of organizational culture and organizational structure on service delivery in the County Government of Kitui. Methodology: The study adopted a descriptive research design and made use of a sample size by use of both stratified random and simple random sampling methods to establish the study sample. For effective data collection, the study was based on primary data which was both qualitative and quantitative. The data was collected through questionnaires and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 22.The analysis involved descriptive and inferential statistics. Data was presented in form of frequency tables for easy interpretation. Regression analysis was employed to establish the relationship between the variables. Results: The study established that organizational structure and organizational culture have significant effect on the Kitui county residence service delivery. The study concludes that the County government has implemented the constitutional structure and adopted a beneficial culture which ensures good planning procedures for effective service delivery. Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that the County management should embrace good governance and promote the available cultural practices and that the structure be made shorter to empower junior officers with more authority and responsibilities

Some Gender Implications of the ‘Civilising Mission’ of the Anglican Church for the Acholi Peoples of Northern Uganda

Anglican missionaries arriving in Uganda’s Acholiland in 1903 saw the local peoples as in need not just of Christianisation but also of civilising. This last consisted primarily of inculcating western notions of gender identities for both men and women, with an emphasis on the wearing of gender-appropriate clothing and terminating the practices of polygyny and bride-price payment. The first missionaries considered the Acholi to have high levels of gender equality but they still believed conversion would improve women’s status through domesticating them and instilling the notion of male superiority, despite the fact that local customary rituals did not distinguish on grounds of gender. Over decades, the population gradually converted to various Christian denominations, mainly Anglicanism and Catholicism, but without abandoning their customary rituals, using them as and when required, to ward off evil or ask for rain, for instance. The most significant impact of the civilising process was arguably the institutionalisation of the notion of masculine superiority now legitimised by appeals to what happened in the Garden of Eden. The paper is based on historical documents, both published and from the missionary archives, as well as on ethnographic research into gender in the region today

Advances in honeycomb layered oxides: Part II -- Theoretical advances in the characterisation of honeycomb layered oxides with optimised lattices of cations

The quest for a successful condensed matter theory that incorporates diffusion of cations, whose trajectories are restricted to a honeycomb/hexagonal pattern prevalent in honeycomb layered materials is ongoing, with the recent progress discussed herein focusing on symmetries, topological aspects and phase transition descriptions of the theory. Such a theory is expected to differ both qualitatively and quantitatively from 2D electron theory on static carbon lattices, by virtue of the dynamical nature of diffusing cations within lattices in honeycomb layered materials. Herein, we have focused on recent theoretical progress in the characterisation of pnictogen- and chalcogen-based honeycomb layered oxides with emphasis on hexagonal/honeycomb lattices of cations. Particularly, we discuss the link between Liouville conformal field theory to expected experimental results characterising the optimal nature of the honeycomb/hexagonal lattices in congruent sphere packing problems. The diffusion and topological aspects are captured by an idealised model, which successfully incorporates the duality between the theory of cations and their vacancies. Moreover, the rather intriguing experimental result that a wide class of silver-based layered materials form stable Ag bilayers, each comprising a pair of triangular sub-lattices, suggests a bifurcation mechanism for the Ag triangular sub-lattices, which ultimately requires conformal symmetry breaking within the context of the idealised model, resulting in a cation monolayer-bilayer phase transition. Other relevant experimental, theoretical and computational techniques applicable to the characterisation of honeycomb layered materials have been availed for completeness.Comment: 93 pages, 21 figures, 4 tables, title updated, table of contents adde

Pseudo-spin model of argentophilicity in honeycomb bilayered materials

We introduce a pseudo-spin model for the argentophilic bond expected in silver-based bilayered materials arising from a spontaneous pseudo-magnetic field interacting with pseudo-spins of two unconventional Ag ions, namely $\rm Ag^{2+}$ and $\rm Ag^{1-}$ electronically distinct from (albeit energetically degenerate to) the conventional $\rm Ag^{1+}$ cation typically observed in monolayered materials. This model suggests the possibility of tuning the dimensionality and hence the conductor-semiconductor-insulator properties of honeycomb bilayered materials by application of external fields, analogous to driving a superconducting or Coulomb blockade system to the normal regime by critical magnetic or electric fields respectively.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figure