Conference Call for Papers

Click here to download the Call for papers 2023 – Registration Form

The conference is an international platform for stakeholders from the private sector, public sector, non-profit organisations, and academia to come together and reflect on, discuss and respond to the opportunities and challenges related to conducting inclusive and principled business in Africa. BEN-Africa’s stated mission is to strengthen the commitment and competence of Africans to do business with moral integrity.
As we convene for our 22nd annual conference in Gqeberha, South Africa, we invite you to join us for a two-day event to explore “Corruption: Ubuntu and the opportunity for change”, featuring keynote speakers, panel discussions and track presentations.

In his 2021 editorial in the African Journal of Business Ethics, the Editor-in-Chief noted a number of issues and opportunities for reflection in relation to: business in Africa; African ethics; and where these collide (Eccles 2021). Two of these were framed as follows:

1. “What, there are no African philosophies?”
2. “The native is declared insensible to ethics” (Fa non, 2001 :32)

In the first, Eccles bemoaned the fact that when we set out to apprehend the nexus between business and ethics in the African continent, nine times out of ten we do so from the perspectives of western moral traditions. In the second he reflected on the discourse surrounding corruption in Africa. In doing this he advanced a scathing critique of the contemporary “common sense” (Chomsky and Waterstone, 2021) that corruption is particularly endemic to Africa. Rather, he noted, it is in fact “pandemic” (Eccles, 2021, p.7).

In constructing this conference theme, we have tried to bring together these two problem, or more positively, opportunity spaces. We invite participants to reflect on the global phenomenon of corruption, but from a specifically African philosophical perspective which we place under the label of Ubuntu. This is a philosophical perspective that has been reported as being widely shared among peoples across much of Central and Southern Africa (Broodryk, 2005; Samkange & Samkange, 1980). And as such it seemed like a good starting point.

So here we propose engaging in a different narrative to the commons sense that where corruption is concerned, western moral traditions offer the solution to an African problem. Instead we propose that philosophical ideas from across the length and breadth of this crazy beautiful continent of ours can offer clues as to how we might advance global thinking about this awful global problem of corruption.

Chomsky, N and Waterstone, M. (2021) Consequences of Capitalism. Chicago, Haymarket Books.
Broodryk, J. (2005). Ubuntu management philosophy: exporting ancient African wisdom into the global world.
Johannesburg: Knowles.
Eccles, N. 2021. Editorial: Thoughts on how the African Journal of Business Ethics might evolve. African
Journal of Business Ethics. 1 5(1 ), 1 -9.
Fanon, F. (2001). The Wretched of the Earth. London: Penguin. https://doi.org/10. 1007 /978-1 -137-05194-3_4
Samkange, S. and Samkange, T.M. (1980). Hunhuism or Ubuntuism:A Zimbabwe Indigenous Political
Philosophy. Salisbury: Graham Publishing.

The conference language is English, however, papers in other languages spoken on the continent are welcome, and we will endeavour to provide a suitable forum for such papers to be presented at the conference.

s!holars and other experts from around the world are invited to submit industry and academic papers and posters that address the theme of “Corruption: Ubuntu and the opportunity for change” (please see below for suggested sub-themes). However, any papers dealing with business or organisational ethics in Africa will be considered.

The conference will take a hybrid format – both virtual and face-to-face presentations will be conducted.

Submission of academic papers may be in abstract format for presentation at the conference only, or as a full paper. Only full paper will be considered for publication in the Conference Proceedings. Full paper authors may be selected and invited to submit their papers for publication in the African Journal of Business Ethics (English) or Ethique et Societe (French) – these would be subject to the respective journal’s publishing protocols.

Posters should be submitted in JPEG format with an abstract in Word of 500-1000 words. Posters accepted for the conference must be provided in physical format and be transported, at the author’s cost, to the conference. All Posters should be about AO in size. Authors are encouraged to be creative. Authors are expected to present (explain) their posters at the conference in person or virtually.

Submissions should be submitted via email to info@benafrica.org. Timelines are the same as abstract submissions.

The best conference poster will be awarded the Arum Lily prize. Posters may be selected for inclusion in the Conference Proceedings.

The abstract of the papers will be reviewed for relevance and rigour. The word count for abstracts should be between 500-1000 words. Accepted abstracts will allow for a paper presentation of a paper during the conference track sessions but will NOT allow for full paper publication. Should you wish to submit a full paper, please see section b. below.

Abstract submissions should be submitted via email to info@benafrica.org. Submissions should be in Word format and contain a version with author/s’ details and a second version without author/s’ details suitable for double blind peer review.

Full paper submissions (5000-8000 words) for possible inclusion in the Conference Proceedings or the African Journal of Business Ethics (English) or Ethique et Societe (French) will be reviewed by at least three reviewers following a double-blind peer review process.

Full paper authors may be selected and invited to submit their papers for publication in the African Journal of Business Ethics (English) or Ethique et Societe (French) – these would be subject to the respective journal’s review and publishing protocols.

By submitting a full paper you agree to blind peer review three other full paper submission and being on the Conference Editorial Board. Papers should be anonymised prior to submission.

Conference Proceedings ISBN Title: Absa BEN-Africa’s 22nd Annual Conference: Conference Proceedings 2023

Conference Proceedings ISBN Number. ISBN: 978-0-6397-6378-1 (e-book)

Please follow the author guidelines for the African Journal of Business Ethics for both Conference Proceedings and for African Journal of Business Ethics submissions:

https://ajobe.journals.ac.za/index.php/pub/about/submissions#authorGuidelines

South African authors: Please note that while the Conference Proceedings are published in accordance with the South African DHET requirements for subsidy purposes, BEN-Africa and the Conference organisers do NOT provide any undertaking or guarantee that the Conference Proceedings will qualify for DHET subsidy purposes.

Only unpublished papers, not submitted elsewhere, will be considered. All accepted papers must be presented in person or virtually at the conference. A maximum of two papers may be submitted by an author.

Full paper submission should be submitted via email to info@benafrica.org. Submissions should be in Word format and contain a version with author/s’ details and a second version without author/s’ details suitable for double blind peer review.

• August 14, 2023: Deadline for abstract submissions (500-1,000 words) and for full papers for potential publication in the Conference Proceedings and the African Journal of Business Ethics (English) or Ethique et Societe (French)*.
• September 18, 2023: Confirmation of acceptance to present at the Conference.
• October 2, 2023: Submission of final papers after review.
• November 1-3, 2023: Conference.
• 29 February 2024. Publication of Conference proceedings.

For papers selected for the African Journal of Business Ethics (English) or Ethique et Societe (French) (these are selected and invited to submit to the journal at the Editor-in chief’s discretion):

• September to December 2023: Authors will be invited to submit their papers in the journal’s submission portal. Papers will undergo a further review process to determine acceptance for the journal. Unsuccessful articles will be published in the Conference Proceedings.
• January 31, 2024: Completion of external review, and feedback to authors.
• 2024: Publication of papers.

We are also pleased to announce the Aloe award for the best conference paper. The winner will be announced at the conference. To be eligible for this award, your FULL paper must be submitted by 14 August 2022. BEN-Africa reserves the right not to make the award should an insufficient amount of full papers be received by the deadline.

Presenters are required to register and pay for the conference, as below and to make their own way to the conference.

• Early Bird special (registration and payment by 1 August 2023): USO 200 / R3000
• BEN-Africa paid member, TEI or USB-ED member: USO 235 / R3500
• Standard Registration: USD275 / R4000

The conference theme is ‘Corruption: Ubuntu and the opportunity for change’. Any paper that addresses this theme, or the wider theme of business ethics in Africa, will be considered.

• The nexus between business and ethics in the African context
• Western versus African moral traditions
• Corruption: Endemic to Africa, or a pandemic?
• African philosophical perspectives

• Developments in business ethics teaching and practice
• Defining the business ethics agenda for Africa: Contextual challenges and opportunities
• Managing ethics in African companies and organisations
• Poverty and sustainability: defining the challenges and the way forward

Registration Form

BEN-Africa 22nd Conference Registration form

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  • Terms and conditions

    1. Bookings are only confirmed on receipt of a registration form and full payment unless arrangements have been made with the conference organisers. 2. Payments can either be made per EFT or online on our conference page: https://www.benafrica.org/conferences-and-forums/ 3. Registrations close one week before a Conference starts. All registrations not paid one week prior to the event will be cancelled to accommodate people from the waiting list. 4. Cancellations two weeks prior incur a 30% penalty. No refunds will be made on cancellations incurred one week prior to the programme. Applicants who have made payment may be substituted by another person at any time prior to the event without incurring an additional fee. BEN-Africa must be notified of any changes in writing. 5. Late registrations will have a 24-hour window period to confirm their registration and payment. 6. All registrations not conforming to these terms and conditions will be cancelled at no cost to BEN-Africa.
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