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University College Dublin is strengthening transatlantic academic collaboration, with particular focus on facilitating the integration of African business contexts in Management and Organization Studies, by partnering with Morgan State University, Howard University, and North Carolina A&T State University to co-host the Fourth Biennial Conference Out of (and Into) Africa taking place online from 10-11 November 2025.

The conference theme is Going Africa-Centric: African Paradigms in International Business, and will bring together leading scholars, researchers, and practitioners from around the world to explore business concepts grounded in African environments, and African approaches to global business, innovation, and policies.

The initiative, pioneered by Morgan State University, highlights the growing importance of African perspectives in shaping international business education, research and practice.

Dr. Omar J. Khan of Morgan State University chairs the 2025 conference, supported by an international team of programme chairs that includes Assistant Professor in Marketing and Society, Penelope Muzanenhamo, of UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.

Together, UCD Smurfit School and UCD Quinn School, Morgan State University, Howard University, and North Carolina A&T State University are creating an inclusive intellectual space for critical discussion on topics ranging from firm strategy and entrepreneurship to consumer marketing, technology, and sustainability within African contexts.

The conference will discuss the following themes:

• Firm Strategies and Tactics, led by Morgan State University’s Dr. Omar J. Khan and Dr. Fredrick Rice
• Consumer Marketing, co-chaired by UCD’s Dr. Penelope Muzanenhamo and North Carolina A&T’s Dr. Juliet Osuji
• Society and Public Policy, co-chaired by Dr. Hakeem Tijani (Morgan State University) and Mr. Rodney Smith (Howard University)

“This collaboration represents the very best of global academic partnership,” said Dr Muzanenhamo. “By bringing together institutions from Ireland, the US, and across Africa, we are collectively working to enhance the representation of African markets, marketplace actors and business environments, and African scholarly voices in mainstream Management and Organization Studies.”

The Out of (and Into) Africa International Business Conference has become a landmark event for scholars examining Africa’s evolving role in global markets. The 2025 edition continues that tradition, reaffirming UCD’s commitment to diversity, global engagement, and thought leadership in international business education.

Conference details can be found on the Morgan State University website.

The conference programme is available.