About the Centre

The Centre for African Languages and Cultural Heritage (CALCH) is a proposed interdisciplinary centre at the Dar es Salaam University College of Education (DUCE), University of Dar es Salaam. Its purpose is to advance the research, documentation, preservation, promotion, and revitalisation of African languages and their associated cultural heritage.

The Centre leverages the expertise and research experience of the Department of Languages and Literature, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, in the fields of African languages, linguistics, literature, translation and interpretation, cultural heritage, language technology, and community engagement. It addresses the increasing imperative to safeguard Africa's linguistic diversity and the indigenous knowledge, histories, identities, and cultural practices embedded within African languages.

CALCH will establish a platform where research, education, cultural heritage, technology, innovation, and community engagement converge. Through interdisciplinary, collaborative approaches, the Centre will contribute to the strengthening of African languages in education, research, governance, technology, creative industries, and other domains of contemporary society.

Vision

To become a leading Centre in Tanzania and the region, where African languages and heritage are harnessed as dynamic drivers of education, innovation, and a unified African identity.

Mission

The Centre is dedicated to preserving and promoting African linguistic diversity through interdisciplinary research, curriculum innovation, and community engagement, positioning Kiswahili and other trans-border languages as catalysts for continental development.

Key Objectives

CALCH seeks to:

  • Promote research and scholarship pertaining to African languages and cultural heritage.

  • Document and preserve endangered and under-resourced African languages.

  • Record and safeguard oral traditions, indigenous knowledge systems, folklore, proverbs, rituals, songs, and other forms of indigenous verbal art.

  • Develop dictionaries, glossaries, grammars, terminologies, and other linguistic resources.

  • Support multilingual education and curriculum development.

  • Promote translation, interpretation, and professional language services.

  • Develop digital resources, corpora, language technologies, and Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools for African languages.

  • Support postgraduate research and training in African languages and related fields.

  • Strengthen collaboration among universities, research institutions, government agencies, communities, cultural organisations, and international partners.

  • Promote African languages and cultural heritage through publications, exhibitions, festivals, creative industries, and public engagement initiatives.