1. African Languages Research and Documentation
The Centre will undertake linguistic, sociolinguistic, comparative, descriptive, historical, and anthropological research on African languages, with particular emphasis on endangered and under-resourced languages. Modern documentation technologies, including audio-visual recording and linguistic annotation tools, will be employed to establish sustainable digital records.
2. Cultural Heritage and Oral Traditions
CALCH will document and preserve oral histories, storytelling, proverbs, riddles, songs, poems, folklore, rituals, and indigenous knowledge systems. The Centre will also explore the relationships between language, history, identity, traditional ecological knowledge, medicine, agriculture, and other cultural practices.
3. Linguistic Resources and Lexicography
The Centre will develop dictionaries, glossaries, terminologies, grammars, annotated collections, and other resources to support the study, teaching, standardisation, and modernisation of African languages.
4. Language, Education and Curriculum Development
CALCH will contribute to curriculum innovation and multilingual education by developing educational resources and supporting the integration of African languages into formal and informal education.
5. Translation, Interpretation and Language Practice
The Centre will advance translation and interpretation through research, professional training, consultancy, and certification pathways aligned with relevant national standards.
6. Language Technology and Digital Innovation
The Centre will promote the digital development of African languages through open-access corpora, digital repositories, terminology tools, translation technologies, applications, and Natural Language Processing and Artificial Intelligence solutions.
7. Community Engagement and Capacity Building
CALCH will collaborate closely with language communities, schools, educators, researchers, translators, interpreters, cultural organisations, and other stakeholders. Training programmes, workshops, outreach activities, language clubs, and collaborative community projects will foster sustainable language development and cultural transmission.
8. Creative Industries and African Cultural Expression
The Centre will promote the use of African languages in literature, theatre, film, music, performance, digital content, exhibitions, and other creative industries, recognising their potential to strengthen cultural identity and contribute to social and economic development.