DOI: 10.11648/j.sd.20261404.17 ISSN: 2331-0650

Foucault's Power/Knowledge Nexus and the Governance of Africa in a Globalized World

Mohammed Hassen
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Michel Foucault's theoretical framework, particularly the power/knowledge nexus, provides a critical lens for analyzing the complexities of global governance. In the context of Africa, globalization often operates through discourses that marginalize local knowledge systems and perpetuate power asymmetries. This article aims to critically examine Foucault's power/knowledge nexus and evaluate its analytical utility in understanding the contemporary governance of Africa within a globalized world. The study employs a qualitative analytical approach, utilizing Foucault's concepts of discourse, genealogy, archaeology of knowledge, governmentality, biopower, and the subject. The analysis proceeds across three intersecting registers: a theoretical reconstruction of Foucault's core ideas, a critical engagement with globalization as a regime of truth, and a focused examination of specific contemporary African issues such as structural adjustment conditionalities, educational colonization, and the politics of development. The findings reveal that international development discourses, colonial epistemologies, and neoliberal governance frameworks actively produce and sustain power asymmetries in Africa. Globalization functions as a regime of truth that positions African states as subjects of external governmentality. The article concludes that Foucault's theoretical tools retain substantial explanatory power for African realities. By drawing on his concept of resistance and counter-conduct, the study highlights pathways to recover space for African agency, advocating for decolonization and the restoration of epistemic sovereignty.

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