Rethinking Economics from African Realities
AHEN advances pluralist, African-centred economic thinking to confront inequality, unemployment, ecological crisis, and structural transformation across the continent.
47+
SCHOLARS
12+
COUNTRIES
6+
RESEARCH THEMES
What Is AHEN?
AHEN is a pan-African community of scholars, students, and practitioners committed to transforming economic thinking through heterodox research, teaching, and policy engagement.
We challenge narrow orthodoxies and strengthen African-rooted economic knowledge in the service of justice, inclusion, and sustainability.
mISSION
“Advancing African-rooted economic thinking for justice, inclusion, and sustainability.”
47+
SCHOLARS
12+
COUNTRIES
6+
RESEARCH THEMES
Our Core Principles
African Centred
Grounded in Africa's histories, institutions, and lived realities. Not abstract models.
Pluralism
Multiple theoretical traditions beyond neoclassical orthodoxy are essential.
Independence
Knowledge must serve society, not powerful domestic or external interests.
Inequality & Power
Class, gender, race, region, and generation are central, not side issues.
History
Colonial legacies, postcolonial trajectories, and structural constraints matter.
Ecology
Climate change and environmental stress demand analysis rooted in just transitions.
What We Do
Research
Empirical heterodox research grounded in African realities — working papers, journals, and comparative studies.
Mentorship
Conferences, regional networks, and early career support connecting scholars across Africa and the diaspora.
TEACHING
Pluralist curricula, student reading groups, and pedagogy resources embedding African contexts in economics education.
Engagement
Policy briefs, public lectures, and media engagement with governments, labour movements, and civil society.
Economics Should Explain Africa
And Help Change It.
AHEN supports students who want to question orthodox economics and engage alternative approaches rooted in African realities. Through reading groups, mentorship, workshops, and research support, we help students explore ideas beyond the mainstream.
Economics Should Explain Africa
And Help Change It.
AHEN exists for students who want to question orthodox economics and learn alternative ways of understanding their realities.