Alena Thiel

Dr. Alena Thiel is a DAAD PRIME Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of Bayreuth and an Associate at the GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies/Institute of African Affairs. She holds a PhD in Citizenship Studies from the University of Aberdeen (2016) and has been affiliated with the German Research Foundation's Priority Programme (SPP1448) from 2011 to 2018. Her research focuses on citizenship concepts, biometric policies, and transnational dynamics in Ghana, particularly examining how temporal frameworks and global flows shape social and political realities.

Education:

• PhD in Citizenship Studies, University of Aberdeen, 2016

Research interests include the translation of policy and knowledge across temporal and spatial divides, gendered urban spaces, and the socio-cultural impacts of Chinese business in Africa. Her work integrates critical theory with ethnographic fieldwork to analyze coeval temporalities and the material infrastructures of identity measurement in Africa.

Her articles highlight the entanglement of biometric systems, market regulations, and gender dynamics in Ghana. The 2017 publications collectively demonstrate her focus on how global policies are locally reinterpreted and contested. Key themes include legal pluralism, transnational entrepreneurship, and the socio-spatial implications of globalization.

Grants and Funding:

• DAAD PRIME/EU Marie Curie Actions (2017): Supported 12-month fellowships at Sciences Po, Paris, and WISER, Johannesburg.

Labs/Teams: Member of SPP1448 (German Research Foundation) and affiliated with the GIGA Institute's African Affairs research unit.