The Institute of African Studies at Zhejiang Normal University (IASZNU), founded in 2007, stands as the first comprehensive institution dedicated to African studies within Chinese universities. Over the past 18 years, the institute has pursued the vision of “serving national needs and achieving world-class standards”, with a focus on contemporary African development issues and China-Africa cooperation. Concentrating on specific areas and countries within Africa, it has made notable research accomplishments across a range of fields, including politics, economics, education, and cultural history.

  Building on the Institute of African Studies, the College of African Area and Country Studies was established in late 2022, followed by the Division of African Area and Country Studies in late 2023. This initiative includes China’s first undergraduate experimental class in African Area and Country Studies. In 2024, it became authorized to offer a first-level doctoral degree in Area and Country Studies.
A comprehensive talent cultivation system for African studies is now in place, covering undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels. Programs include a first-level doctoral program in Area and Country Studies, an interdisciplinary doctoral program in African Education and Social Development, a first-level master’s program in Political Science, and an interdisciplinary master’s program in African Studies recognized by the Ministry of Education.
        The college collaborates with the College of Humanities, College of Foreign Languages, and College of Geography and Environmental Sciences at Zhejiang Normal University to establish first-level doctoral programs in the disciplines of Chinese History, Foreign Language and Literature, and Geography. There are nearly 60 full-time researchers, over 95% of whom hold doctoral degrees, and more than 90% have experience studying or conducting research in African countries.
        IASZNU has four dedicated studies centers focused on African Politics and International Relations, African Economics, African Education, and African History and Culture, respectively. It also houses nine centers for area and country studies, including the Center for East Africa Area and Country Studies, the Center for Francophone African Country Studies, the Center for African Security and Development Studies, and the Center for Nigerian Studies. The institute also features the Translation Center for African Studies, the Center for African Literature Library and Professional Database for African Studies, along with China’s first African museum and a China-Africa Exchange Museum.
        IASZNU initiated the China-Africa Think Tank Forum (CATTF), which has successfully held 13 sessions in China and Africa and is now part of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) framework. CATTF has emerged as a high-end platform for impactful academic exchanges and think tank dialogues between China and Africa. At the 13th CATTF, scholars from 50 African countries jointly released the “Africa-China Dar es Salaam Consensus”, which garnered widespread attention and acclaim from the Global South.
        IASZNU has established robust cooperative relationships with universities and think tanks in over 30 African countries and has set up branches in South Africa representing southern Africa and Tanzania representing eastern Africa as well as  Confucius Institutes in South Africa, Cameroon, Mozambique and Tanzania. Currently, it operates more than 20 provincial and ministerial-level exchange platforms, including the Collaborative Innovation Center for African Studies and China-Africa Cooperation co-established with the Ministry of Education and the Zhejiang Provincial Government, as well as the Research Center for China-South Africa People-to-people Exchanges with the Ministry of Education.
        IASZNU has been recognized for five consecutive years in the University of Pennsylvania’s “Global Go To Think Tank Index Report” as one of the best university-affiliated regional studies center in the world. In 2021, it ranked 39th among China’s top 100 think tanks and 8th among university-affiliated think tanks in the Global Think Tank Impact: Evaluation Report. It received an A+ rating as one of the Top 100 University Think Tanks of Chinese Think Tank Index (CTTI) rankings and was honored as an outstanding case in think tank development for the 2022 CTTI.