DECOLONISING AFRICAN KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS: PHILOSOPHICAL PATHWAYS TOWARD EPISTEMIC JUSTICE AND INTELLECTUAL SOVEREIGNTY

Abstract

This paper examines the philosophical imperative of decolonising African spaces of knowledge by engaging the works of Paulin Hountondji, Kwasi Wiredu, Sophie Oluwole, and Shittu Momoh. It argues that colonialism produced a long-standing epistemic hierarchy that delegitimised African intellectual traditions, reduced indigenous epistemologies to folklore, and entrenched Eurocentric frameworks within African education. The study identifies three interrelated dimensions of epistemic decolonisation: epistemic justice, conceptual autonomy, and methodological reconstruction. Beginning with an analysis of epistemic injustice, the paper demonstrates how colonial discourse systematically misrepresented African thought as mythical and uncritical. It then explores conceptual decolonisation through African languages, proverbs, and indigenous logical systems, showing how these provide alternative philosophical frameworks that rival those of Western philosophy. Finally, the paper advances the reconstructive programme of African philosophy by highlighting the role of institutions, curricula, and African intellectual sovereignty. It concludes by asserting that decolonisation is not merely a political project but also a philosophical necessity that requires critique, renewal, and innovation. African philosophy must reclaim its epistemic tools, interrogate inherited categories, and affirm its intellectual agency within global philosophical discourse.