On the 28th, 29th and 30th of April, the V International Colloquium on African History was held, with the theme “Missionation, Agencies and Historical Subjects”. The event was hosted by Unaerp and broadcast live on YouTube from Unaerp TV.  The lectures, round-tables discussion, interviews, book launches, working groups and short courses were attended by more than 600 listeners from different parts of the world and were recognized for their excellent discussions and knowledge promotion.

Carried out by the International Relations program, the organization of the event was led by the Unaerp professor, Sandra Molina and the professor from Unifesp, Patrícia Santos, with support from the Unaerp Center for Studies and Research in International Relations and Foreign Trade (NEPRI/CECCEX), Advertising and Marketing program and volunteer students. “Unaerp took on the responsibility of being a partner university and host this event with great enthusiasm. The year of this edition is very special because the International Relations program is completing 15 years and the Colloquium is a great celebration of our history”, highlights the undergraduate coordinator, professor Tamires Ferreira Souza.

As a result of cooperation between national and international institutions of excellence (Unaerp, Unicamp, Unifasp, USP, Unesp, Unifesp, Unilab, Unifal, UNEB, University of Pernambuco, CITCEM - University of Porto, and Foundation for Science and Technology of Portugal), the colloquium originated from the “International Project Sources and Research of Missionary Stories in Africa”, which presents reflections based on collections composed of documents from the Church and Portuguese colonial authorities, as well as ethnographic documents describing populations and daily life of different Africans.

For Professor Sandra Molina, studying about Africa is fundamental, as these researchers work with all the documentation that was produced within the religious missions, which have been in the region since the 16th century. In addition to a historical review, these records allow us to understand a continent that is different from what the newspapers show, a complexity that goes unnoticed in everyday life, in addition to understanding the organization of countries and their relations with Latin American nations, such as Brazil, for example. “This Colloquium and the study of this theme, which is Africa, only has to add, open up other possibilities for new research to come. This understanding is fundamental and it is very rare to have such a large and special group of researchers talking about it in a concentrated way as at the event”.

Grasielly Roberta Silva, student in the 5th semester of the International Relations program, says that the Colloquium was an incredible event and that it will take the lessons learned beyond graduation. “Understanding the issue of Missions, one of the internal dynamics that is present in the African continent, is one of the biggest challenges of the current context and all the people involved in this project were able to play the role of spreading knowledge with mastery. I just have to thank the program for providing all of us, students, the opportunity to participate in events like this”, she concludes.


Unaerp teacher, Sandra Molina, who led the organization of the event


The coordinator of International Relations at Unaerp, professor Tamires Ferreira Souza


The professor from Unifesp, Patrícia Santos, who also collaborated with the organization of the event