The International Rescue Committee has been so fortunate to have had a longstanding relationship with Princeton in Africa since our very first Fellows landed in Rwanda in 1999. Whether it was Emily or Renee in 1999 or the 110 Fellows across 14 IRC countries over the years, we have been blessed by the relationship, the quality of the Fellows and the impact on what IRC does on the ground every single day.
Professor Mahiri Mwita
Mwita is a lecturer of Swahili and African studies at the Princeton Institute of International and Regional Studies (PIIRS) at Princeton University. He is also the Director, Princeton in Kenya – a summer study abroad program that offers Elementary Swahili Instruction and the Global Seminar on: Kenya – The Evolution of the Capital of Western Capitalism in Eastern Africa. Mahiri’s teaching and research interests focuses on contemporary relations and interactions between Africa and Western (European and American) imaginaries through the lenses of post-colonial theories. He is interested in how historical events such as colonization, the cold war conflicts, 9/11 and the politics of “global war on terror” has been and continue to define how the West (and now the East led by China) sees, defines, and relates with Africa. This determines not only the political, economic, and cultural interactions between African states and the rest of the world, but also why and how Kiswahili and African languages have become an important part of the “critical” international education in the American/Western academy and political policy. Before joining Princeton, Mwalimu Mahiri grew up and went to school in Kenya and Tanzania and taught at Moi University and Egerton University in Kenya, and more recently at St. Lawrence University in New York. His teaching philosophy challenges students to confront the Euro-centric knowledge bases that molded the West’s trajectories towards Africa, relearn, and seek new paradigms of re-engaging with Africa and its role, relation, and interactions with the rest of the world.
Our History
In 1999, a group of Princeton alumni, faculty, and staff launched Princeton in Africa as an independent affiliate of Princeton University inspired by the University’s informal motto, “Princeton in the Nation’s Service and in the Service of All Nations.” In 2010, the program opened up to include graduates of any US accredited university in order to meet the growing demand from host organizations and allow more young professionals access to the unique opportunities afforded by PiAf. During the past 20 years, we have placed over 600 Fellows with more than 100 organizations in 36 countries, while developing more strategic partnerships across Africa and creating more opportunities for our alumni community to engage with the continent and with one another.