ASSRC promotes scholarly research on Africa and works to foster cooperation between Turkey and African researchers, students and artists. In its development from initial conception to project planning, the Center seeks the active participation and cooperation of both African and Turkish scholars in order to identify and meet the needs of both communities. ASSRC specifically aims to:

· Encourage collaborative research between Turkish and African researchers, universities, and relevant institutions through a program of research fellowships and the organization of colloquia, seminars, and workshops on topics of both general and scholarly interest.

· Make available to Turkish and visiting researchers a research library, computer facilities, and a computer network capable of sustaining significant research efforts by providing up-to-date data and information on Africa and the Diaspora.

· Provide a forum in which both local and foreign researchers may conduct and share their work, and create a transnational community of scholars and researchers.

· Promote interdisciplinary approaches and considerations of gender in the study of Africa and the African Diaspora.

· Gather, catalogue, and disseminate the results of research on Africa