Professor Adeyemo was appointed as a visiting professor and research fellow in the Centre for the Studies of Religion and Society (CSRS) at the University of Victoria in Canada from January to July 2022.
The aim of his visit was to conduct interdisciplinary research on decoloniality and new postcolonialism, with a particular focus on African higher education. This research built on his book titled The Education Systems of Africa, published by Springer in 2021, which focuses on changes in African education and policy at the macro level. However, during his research at the University of Victoria he focused on the study of Africanisation, African knowledge, and postcolonial discourse in pre-colonial African society. Basically, his objective was to provide a new perspective on how history and society have shaped the purpose of higher education and knowledge production in Africa.

During his stay in Canada, Professor Adeyemo signed a book contract with Routledge in London for this research project and submitted a full manuscript on Rhetoric of the Asia Higher Education Rankings to Brill-Sense in the Netherlands. He also had an article accepted for publication in the South African Journal of Higher Education (SAJHE) and contributed a book chapter to the fourth edition of the International Encyclopedia of Education published by Elsevier. At the CSRS he attended the daily academic talks with other fellows, made presentations about his research project and participated in 19 public lectures on various interdisciplinary topics presented by top scholars in different academic fields. A presentation at CSRS during which he explored the question about whether the editorial review process for African publications is mimicking the structure of colonialism was particularly noteworthy.

The above-mentioned presentation is included as one of the chapters in his forthcoming book, African epistemologies in higher education research, which will be published by Routledge. In this presentation, he addressed issues related to (1) power and global politics in knowledge production, (2) the purpose and what counts as knowledge, and (3) policy dimensions in academic knowledge production in Africa. He benefited from the feedback from CSRS scholars and especially those who sit on editorial review boards since he is interested in the kind of knowledge that matters, and who controls its production. Through these academic activities, Professor Adeyemo has established linkages with colleagues in North America with a view to involving academics in the Department of Education Management and Policy Studies (EMPS) and the Faculty of Education at the University of Pretoria in collaborative projects.

According to Professor Adeyemo, the CSRS at the University of Victoria has a culture of daily intellectual engagement through academic ‘coffee talks’. These daily informal meetings bring together scholars who are participating in different fellowships to discuss critical topics. His experience at CSRS has therefore been intellectually enriching. The Centre also hosts public lectures every Thursday when fellows and academics from different parts of the world can join in and debate academic issues. Essentially, he noticed that the Centre found his insights and perspectives on Africa and Asia helpful in grounding their conversations.
A special feature of the CSRS is its non-hierarchical structure, which allows academics to feel comfortable when participating in discussions, regardless of the stage in which they are in their careers. The office and amenities provided by the CSRS enabled Professor Adeyemo to complete his book manuscripts and article/chapter and secure two book contracts from world-class publishers within seven months. Now that he is back at the University of Pretoria, he focuses on providing capacity support to early academics and collaborating with colleagues in the Department and the Faculty of Education.

It was indeed a great academic journey during which he experienced the grace of God, according to Professor Adeyemo. He would like to sincerely thank the University of Pretoria for granting him sabbatical leave with funding to participate in the CSRS Visiting Research Fellowship Programme at the University of Victoria. He also wishes to thank the Dean of the Faculty of Education, Professor Chika Sehoole, for his continued support during the period of his fellowship in Canada, and EMPS HODs, Professors Cyril Hartell and Siphiwe Mthiyane, whose support contributed to the success of his fellowship and productivity during this period.

Finally, Professor Adeyemo would like to thank his wife Mary and their son Emmanuel for their constant prayers and support.