THREE academic institutions in Africa have established units dedicated to the study of the United States. They are the University of the Witwatersrand’s African Centre for the Study of the United States, the American Language Centre in Morocco, and most recently, the University of Pretoria’s African Centre for the Study of the United States. University of Pretoria Principal Tawana Kupe and Christopher Isike, the new Centre’s Director, explain why Africans need a better understanding of America. Authors TAWANA KUPE, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University, University of Pretoria CHRISTOPHER ISIKE, Professor of African Politics and International Relations, University of Pretoria…