Rebuilding Pan-Africanism in Dakar through the China-aided Museum of Black Civilisations

In recent years, several African nations have embarked on constructing new national museums as symbols of cultural revival and political agency. This article focuses on Senegal’s decision to partner with China in building the Museum of Black Civilisations in Dakar. Moving beyond conventional political in China’s museum building in the African continent, the article explores how the museum not only reconfigures the cityscape but also transforms the relationship between urban dwellers and the built environment. The article offers a descriptive–interpretive reading of the Museum of Black Civilisations, analysing its symbolic and spatial meanings through the lens of urban spatial practice and intentionality shaped by both host and builder, and conceptualising the museum as a continental model of Pan-Africanism. While Pan-Africanism encompasses broad political, economic, and ideological dimensions, this article interprets it through the lens of urban spatial practice and intentionality―shaped by both host and builder. It argues that the Museum of Black Civilisations embodies a form of Pan-African solidarity historically championed by Senegal and increasingly asserted by China in its cultural engagements on the continent.

Suweon Kim, Jérémie Eyssette

Journal of Korean Association of African Studies