The institute was established in 1963 as a research center for African culture and to also function as a repository of oral and documented African history. At inception, during a period following the country's independence, the institute acted as an initiative to promote understanding of African cultural identity and also scholarly cooperation within the African diaspora. Its first director was William Leo Hansberry, who served as director while abroad, he was succeeded in 1964 by Edward Blyden III and then Samuel Nwabara.
