From Storytelling to Ethical AI
Seminario web | En línea
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Organizado por:
AGDEN
Sobre el evento
African evaluation scholars such as Bagele Chilisa advocate for a relational evaluation paradigm rooted in African philosophies like Ubuntu, emphasizing community, spirituality, participation, and interconnectedness as alternatives to dominant Western evaluation approaches. This session shares findings from the seedling phase of a multi-country research initiative led by Africa Gender and Development Evaluators Network under the EvalIndigenous EI-Indexing Seeding Grants, which explores indigenous knowledge systems in Lesotho and Nigeria through mixed methods and digital artefacts such as storytelling videos and cultural documentation. The studies reveal that indigenous knowledge embedded in Basotho cultural practices, Nigeria’s Ikom Monoliths, and Berom business systems is relational, orally transmitted, and highly relevant to global issues including climate resilience, inequality, and gender. The session also critically examines the role of AI in evaluation, highlighting both its potential to surface marginalized perspectives and its risks of decontextualization, bias, and exclusion of culturally embedded knowledge. Ultimately, the webinar argues for a more ethical and context-sensitive use of AI in African evaluation that prioritizes cultural integrity, community consent, data sovereignty, and the indispensable role of human evaluators.
Key Takeaways
• African relational evaluation approaches challenge dominant Western models by centering Ubuntu, community participation, and interconnectedness.
• The AGDEN-led research documents indigenous knowledge systems in Lesotho and Nigeria through mixed methods and video-based storytelling.
• Indigenous knowledge is primarily oral, community-based, and deeply connected to culture, identity, and local problem-solving.
• AI offers opportunities to amplify marginalized knowledge but also risks bias, loss of context, and exclusion of non-textual knowledge systems.
• Ethical AI use in African evaluation requires safeguards such as cultural integrity, community ownership, consent, and human-centered interpretation.
Key Takeaways
• African relational evaluation approaches challenge dominant Western models by centering Ubuntu, community participation, and interconnectedness.
• The AGDEN-led research documents indigenous knowledge systems in Lesotho and Nigeria through mixed methods and video-based storytelling.
• Indigenous knowledge is primarily oral, community-based, and deeply connected to culture, identity, and local problem-solving.
• AI offers opportunities to amplify marginalized knowledge but also risks bias, loss of context, and exclusion of non-textual knowledge systems.
• Ethical AI use in African evaluation requires safeguards such as cultural integrity, community ownership, consent, and human-centered interpretation.
Presentador/a
| Nombre | Título | Biografía |
|---|---|---|
| Nurain Ahmed | Young & Emerging Evaluator | A young and emerging evaluator from South Africa, Nurain has over 5 years of experience in the development sector. Having worked on projects focusing on youth development, women’s economic advancement and now working in the humanitarian relief sector for Islamic Relief South Africa. Through a research grant by AGDEN she completed a research project on Indigenous cultural practices in Lesotho with the aim of contributing to knowledge products towards Made in Africa evaluations. She also volunteers with the South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association (SAMEA) as a Deputy Convenor on the TIG group and for Girls for Girls as a Co Director for M&E. |
| Rinji Kwarkas | Rinji Kwarkas is a Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning (MERL) specialist and mentor. A professional evaluator in the development sector since 2016. As a systems thinker, he ensures accountability and dissemination of learning. He is the convener SHEvaluators, the Secretary General of the Nigerian Association of Evaluators, and member of the International Institute of Forecasters. Skilled in quantitative and qualitative research, Organizational Capacity Assessment (OCA), and forecasting socio-economic phenomena, he develops and manages MERL systems. Rinji is PanAfrican; championing decolonization, localization, diversity and equity in communities and institutions. He conducts independent external evaluations to advance development across Africa. | |
| Angela Inyang | Angela Aje Inyang is a journalist, documentary producer, and communications professional with over 15 years of experience in media, storytelling, and digital communication. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from Daystar University, Kenya, and a First-Class Master’s degree in Digital Media and Communication from the University of Nicosia, Cyprus. Her work spans broadcast journalism, documentary production, digital advocacy, and development communication, with a focus on social justice, indigenous knowledge, culture, gender, and digital media. Angela is an AGDEN EvalIndigenous Small Grants Laureate (2025) and co-author of the 2026 journal article, Cultural Traditions in the Digital Age: Exploring Post-Birth Pregnancy Reveals Among People of Nigerian Descent on Social Media. She currently serves as Programme Officer (New Media) at the Lux Terra Leadership Foundation. | |
| Dr Dang Dagwom | Dr. Dagwom Yohanna Dang, Esq., FCA, CPFA, ACTI, BL, NAE, PhD is a multidisciplinary scholar and public finance expert whose work bridges policy, finance, economics, law, and academia. He holds multiple degrees in accounting, economics, and law, including a PhD in Accounting and Finance, and is a Member of the Nigeria Association of Evaluators (NAE), a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA), an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, and a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. He also earned a Certificate in Public Policy Analysis (PPA) from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). He is an Associate Professor of Accounting and Public Finance, and he currently serves as Director of the Center for Public Policy and Finance at ANAN University, Kwall, Plateau State. |
Moderador/a
| Nombre | Título | Biografía |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Florence Etta |