Decolonial Dilemmas: Balancing Global Recognition and Local Impact in South African Research

Abstract

The pursuit of decolonial work in African academia can be delayed by the prevailing pressure to attain international recognition as a requirement for academic promotion. Academic promotion for scholars is often linked to publishing in high-impact journals, which often lack African representation. This paper looks at internationally benchmarked system of evaluating and rating researchers used by the National Research Foundation (NRF) and how the notion of Considerable International Recognition (CIR) brings consequences for local work. Utilizing Qualitative Document Analysis (QDA) this study investigated how the definitions and criteria related to CIR in documents provided by the NRF of South Africa influences researchers to prioritize international scholarly activities over locally relevant work. This analysis also seeks to uncover the implications of this prioritization for decolonial work within the South African research landscape. It explores how the pursuit of international recognition, as defined by the NRF, may intersect with and challenge efforts aimed at decolonizing knowledge production and promoting research that is more attuned to local contexts and needs.