Book Shipment to Sierra Leone

In June Dr. Alusine Jalloh, founding director of The Africa Program at The University of Texas at Arlington, presented 18,473 new books (humanities, science, engineering, math, social sciences, business, and economics) with an estimated value of over $500,000 to over sixty universities, public libraries, polytechnics, high schools, and public research institutions across Sierra Leone. This is part of a long-term effort to improve education in this small West African country. Sierra Leone has just emerged from a decade-long civil war that left as many as 200,000 people killed and widespread destruction of the country’s infrastructure. The partners of The Africa Program on the book shipment included Books For Africa, Mercy Corps, McGraw-Hill, the Sierra Leone Library Board, Arlington (Texas)-based African American churches, and Texas-based non-profit Sierra Leonean organizations (Sisters of Sierra Leone, Tegloma, Leone Knights Social club, and Sierra Stars Soccer Association).

North Texas Africa Health Initiative (NTAHI)

The North Texas Africa Health Initiative (NTAHI) is a coalition of professional individuals committed to addressing healthcare challenges in Africa through strengthened partnerships between African countries and a group of North Texas universities, hospitals, and faith based communities It is the Mission of NTAHI to utilize innovative, sustainable and culturally congruent interventions to advance the equitable distribution of healthcare resources, and access to healthcare for global mankind.

Conferences

In 1999, the Africa Program convened an international conference on black business in Africa and the United States at UTA. The conference brought together scholars and business executives from Africa, Europe and the United States who offered multidisciplinary perspectives on the history, growth and changing dynamics of black business in both Africa and the United States, as well as transatlantic black business between the United States and Africa.

In 2002, the proceedings of this conference were published by the University of Rochester Press in a volume titled “Black Business and Economic Power,” co-edited by Alusine Jalloh and Toyin Falola.