Turbulences in Repackaging Traditional Knowledge in an Era of Sovereignty

Abstract

Traditional or Indigenous systems have always been the bedrock of Africans' socioeconomic and political livelihoods before the dawn of colonialism in developing countries like Uganda and Zimbabwe. Indigenous practices are important to people's daily lives. This chapter looks to strengthen classical African systems and methods for decoloniality. The study explored traditional knowledge with a focus on its meanings and critical features, reviewed the laws protecting traditional knowledge in Uganda and Zimbabwe, and how libraries can contribute to preserving such classical knowledge in Zimbabwe and Uganda. It explored the factors that affect the preservation of traditional and proposed strategies to enhance conventional conservation by libraries in Zimbabwe and Uganda. An Afrocentric paradigm underpins the chapter, and data were collected from the literature review and the researchers' personal experiences as members of indigenous communities.