Southern development discourse for Southern Africa: linguistic and cultural imperatives

Abstract

Although Africa's dependency on the West is understandably rooted in economic and political developments that have a long historical trajectory, it is also an epistemological issue. The current push for a shift away from traditional dependency on Western countries is untenable as Africa's economic development pathways continue to be informed by Euro-American epistemologies. This stifles creative and innovative thinking in ways other than those from the Global North. The majority of African countries have looked East for possible solutions to this paradox. However, Eastern models alone cannot be a viable solution either. They need to be adapted to local African cultural conditions and, most importantly, they need to be used alongside local African epistemologies. With specific reference to southern Africa, this article argues that both the Northern and Eastern traditions of knowledge should be seen as part of a diverse global system of epistemologies and that they should be complemented by what I call Southern development discourse. I highlight the promises and affordances of African linguistic diversity and cultural resources in advancing the argument that creativity and innovation are guaranteed when local contextual particularities and cultural specificities are part of the underpinning pillars of policy frameworks on development.