Amid escalating global shocks - from climate change and pandemics to economic volatility and geopolitical shifts - and rapid technological change, African Indigenous Knowledge Systems (AIKS) remain vital, living assets. They contribute directly to resilient societies, sustainable development, economic competitiveness, and social justice across the continent. As African countries navigate these pressures, integrating AIKS across national sectors has become increasingly urgent. Doing so supports citizen needs, strengthens responses to technological change, and shapes labour markets that draw on local knowledge and context. Engaging AIKS provides innovative, culturally grounded, and environmentally sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges. This 2026 AASIKS conference will showcase best practices, identify success factors, examine enabling conditions, address challenges, and highlight opportunities unique to Africa. Ultimately, it seeks to strengthen collaboration and excellence in higher education, research, and policy - positioning AIKS at the centre of Africa’s path toward a resilient, self-determined future.

Following the strong response to our previous call and numerous requests from prospective contributors, the African Association for the Study of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (AASIKS), together with the Local Organising Committee at Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE), is pleased to issue this third and final Call for Submissions for the 9th Annual International Conference.

The abstract submission deadline has been extended to give more scholars, practitioners, community knowledge holders, policymakers, students, and innovators the opportunity to contribute to this landmark continental gathering. The notification of acceptance and revised abstract deadlines have been adjusted accordingly. All other dates, including early-bird registration, final registration, and the full-paper submission window, remain unchanged. The conference venue has been moved to Baradzanwa Cultural Village. We warmly invite you to be part of a conference that is centring African Indigenous Knowledge at the heart of Africa's resilient, self-determined future.

Globally, communities face climate change, environmental degradation, persistent inequality, food insecurity, youth unemployment, and systemic exclusion in knowledge production - challenges that expose the limits of dominant and hegemonic paradigms and underscore the urgency of recentring Indigenous epistemologies to shape just, resilient, and sustainable futures. Concurrently, emerging technologies - including AI, big data, and digital preservation - pose risks of cultural erasure while also creating opportunities for revitalisation, documentation, and sovereignty when guided by Indigenous values and governance. This conference situates Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) as co-equal, future-making knowledge for policy, education, innovation, and sustainable development.

The conference also advances the African Union Agenda 2063, particularly Aspiration 5: “An Africa with a strong cultural identity, common heritage, shared values and ethics.” It further impacts Aspirations 1 and 6, as well as Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) priorities under continental frameworks, by fostering dialogue among Indigenous knowledge holders, researchers, technologists, and policymakers to co-create hybrid knowledge systems suited to African realities. In essence, the conference seeks to deepen the advancement of Indigenous Knowledge Systems not as outdated traditions, but as significant pillars of Africa’s knowledge economy, epistemic transformation, and sustainable development agenda.