Decolonising the Kenyan Academy: A Policy Framework for African Studies,

African Studies curricula in the country's higher education institutions remain heavily influenced by Western epistemological frameworks, often marginalising indigenous knowledge systems and local scholarly perspectives. This perpetuates a form of intellectual dependency that undermines the relevance and transformative potential of the discipline. This policy analysis article aims to critically examine the structural and pedagogical issues within African Studies programmes and to propose a comprehensive, actionable policy framework for their decolonisation. It seeks to identify key leverage points for integrating African-centred epistemologies and methodologies. The analysis employs a critical policy analysis approach, synthesising findings from a systematic review of existing curriculum documents, institutional policies, and relevant scholarly literature on decolonisation in higher education. The analysis identifies a pronounced dissonance between institutional rhetoric on indigenisation and actual curricular content, with over 70% of core reading lists in sampled programmes dominated by Euro-American authors. A central theme is the systemic exclusion of African philosophical thought as a foundational analytical lens. Current approaches to African Studies are inadequate for achieving epistemic justice. A fundamental restructuring, not merely incremental reform, is required to centre African knowledge production and dismantle entrenched colonial legacies within the academy. Key recommendations include: mandating a minimum proportion of African-authored and locally produced texts in core curricula; establishing centres for the study of indigenous knowledge systems; and revising promotion criteria to value community-engaged scholarship and publications in African-based journals. decolonisation, higher education policy, African Studies, epistemic justice, curriculum reform, Kenya This article provides a novel, integrated policy mechanism linking curriculum reform, research assessment, and institutional governance to operationalise the decolonisation of African Studies in a national context.