Conservative Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa: Examining the role of Arab Education

Over the last fifty years, Islamic fundamentalism, marked by scripturalism and an emphasis on purification of Islamic customs, has emerged in sub-Saharan Africa. Motivated by this seismic transformation, this chapter examines how and why Islamic fundamentalism emerged in African countries. I trace the role of educational exchange with Islamic institutions in Arab countries in serving as a key channel for the diffusion of conservative ideas from the Arab world into African countries. I particularly focus on al-Azhar University in Egypt and the Islamic University of Medina in Saudi Arabia as two prominent educational institutions where reformist ideas were dominant during the mid- and late-twentieth century. Through case studies from East and West Africa, I show that beneficiaries of educational exchange played a key role in founding reformist Islamic organizations that facilitate the diffusion of conservative ideas in African countries.