Western Intellectual Hegemony and Academic Research in Sub-Saharan Africa

In this study, the narrative literature review methodology was assigned to interrogate the western intellectual hegemony and the challenges in academic research in sub-Saharan Africa. The Marxist dependency theory of knowledge was commissioned as the lens for analysis. Despite the presence of vast literature indicating that sub-Saharan Africa is submerged in chronic challenges ranging from poverty and hunger to poor health services, this study found that the region continuously lags behind in knowledge production. The factors that facilitate western intellectual hegemony and stunted knowledge production are linked to knowledge imperialism and the digital divide. The study proffered strategies to reduce Western intellectual hegemony, such as investment in infrastructure and training that focus on decolonisation and empowerment of chronically disadvantaged African academics, such as women and early-career researchers.