Mbuyamba proffers roadmap for new African identity at CBAAC’s BHM

•Executive Director, the Observatory of Cultural Policies in Africa, Maputo, Mozambique, Prof. Lupwishi Mbuyamba, (l) receiving a gift from Director General of the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC), Prof Tunde Babawale after presentation of the former’s lead paper at the Annual Black History Month Festival’s Public Lecture, which held at the Trenchard Hall of the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, last Thursday, February 24

Executive Director of the Maputo, Mozambique-based agency, the Observatory for Cultural Policies in Africa (OCPA), Prof. Lupwishi Mbuyamba has said the only panacea to stemming the rise in the horde of Africans rushing to the Western worlds in purported search for the greener pastures remained for African leaders to ensure an even spread of the continent’s wealth and resources.

He also posited that the same solution applied for the menace of corruption as he maintained that only accountability and good governance could guarantee that Africans stopped flocking to the Western worlds in what many have termed ‘neo slavery.’

Prof Mbuyamba spoke as guest lecturer at the Public Lecture organized to open this year’s edition of the Black History Month (BHM) by the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC), at the Trenchard Hall, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, Thursday.

The public lecture preceded a public exhibition at the Institute of African Studies, at the same university, lined up as part of a week-long programme to mark the BHM, commemorated  globally to celebrate the Black civilization.

Mbuyamba’s paper which was platformed on the theme of this year’s celebrations of : “African Diaspora, African Unity and African Development,” sought to provide an insight into the major contributions made by Africans in the Diaspora to the development of the mother continent, Africa.

“Today, Africans die in boats ferrying them to Europe or America just as obtained in the days of the Slavery, but the only difference being that the latter journey is voluntary. Tunisians risk their lives to get Italy and other parts of Europe as other Africans go through the rigours of the Visa lottery embarrassments just in an attempt to get a better life.

“In the same vein also the youth in the rural areas or villages surge to the cities to seek better lives. Now if you provide electricity for them to do the things that those in the cities do, what would they be looking for in the cities? By extension, if you talk about corruption in Africa as factors militating against the African renaissance, then I would say that if good governance is demanded as standard, the problem of corruption would be a thing of the past, considering that both emigrations and corruption are problems affecting the emergence of the ideal Africanism,” said Mbuyamba.

As a challenge to the continent’s peoples’ integration, therefore, the guest lecturer called for the re-evaluation of the impact of the African Diaspora in order to strengthen the link between them and Africa..

“ The impact of the African Diaspora needs evaluation in both sense, the benefit and improvement of the well being of the populations in the continent in one side and the influences, the acculturation of the African values of civilization facing a new environment and  the changes the globalization phenomenon will inevitably bring to African culture in other side. There is then a need to strengthen the links between the Diaspora and the Mother Africa and help build bridges through a well organized tourism system .By establishing networks and organizing forums and celebrations, the moral link is preserved and essential brotherhood values maintained. By associating the African Diaspora to the planning and offering facilities, conditions are created for investment and their participation in building a better environment to develop the continent. Somehow from within.”

According to him, the development of Africa is the final goal of all strategies to put in place just as he called for several levels of responsibilities to be considered including the elite and leaders of the communities, intellectuals, decision makers.

By raising the elite’s consciousness and tasking the leadership,  Mbuyamba stressed the need to adopt what he termed the ‘Seven pillars that constitute the frame of the New Chart for African Cultural Renaissance,’ which he said included among others: Access to culture for all including minorities groups in the country and marginalized people; Equal involvement for all categories of the population, in particular youth (to be attentive at the young people expectations) and women(especially in the areas of their particular interest and capacity),traditional leaders, church leaders, and others.

Respect of democracy and liberties for all creators, consumers, their expression, their associations, their productions, support to creativity; Preservation of the memory of the history of peoples, their heritage and legacy, transmission to young generations, participation in the renaissance campaign by promoting and developing cultural instruments: sciences, technologies, know how, languages; Integration of the cultural dimension in development process including in the definition of strategies and the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals and involvement of the creative economy strategy in the planning projects;

Contribution to the African Integration at regional and pan-African levels including the African Diaspora; and  Adoption of legitimate Cultural Policies at national level and promotion of the definition and implementation of local cultural policies with an involvement of professional and of the civil society representatives, conclude the list.

“The final objective beyond the campaign for African Cultural Renaissance is to identify and build reference centres of excellence expected to generate a new or an updated system of values and draw an ideal of a true African, an ideal for the contemporary times. An African Humanism. To this task contributions and cooperation are expected from all,” he stressed.

Earlier, Director General of CBAAC, Prof Tunde Babawale, in his opening remarks, explained that the choice of the theme for this year’s celebrations was hinged on the United Nations declaration of 2011 as the ‘International Year of the people of African Descent.’

According to Babawale, the UN’s intentions was aimed at promoting and respect for African heritage and culture and to further ensure the participation and integration of people of African descent into the society, hence, CBAAC, as a pan African agency established by Nigeria to preserve, promote and propagate African culture ‘is proud to be associated with that UN’s decision.’

The CBAAC chief who noted that Africa remained a hugely untapped resource by Africans themselves, believed that the continent can tap from her Diaspora links to vast networks that can reposition the continent for greater achievements.

“Africans in the Diaspora given their exposure to Western technologies and education are a vantage position to transfer same growth and the development of the African continent. In the same way also that Africans can help to promote voluntary self-help development projects that can rescue the continent from near collapse of social service. The continent’s Diaspora remains the mirror that reflects the resourcefulness of Africa’s global presence and the beauty in her cultural diversity and ways of life,” said Babawale.

The occasion chaired by Prof Mala Daura, Vice Chancellor of the University of Maiduguri, had in attendance, members of the academia, large contingent of students from the both the host University of Ibadan and the University of Lagos, Akoka, Yaba, Lagos.

From the government Mr. Martins Adaji, Acting Artistic Director of the National Troupe of Nigeria, represented the minister of Tourism and culture, Alhaji Sadiq Mohammed and Mr. George Ufot, Director of Culture at the Ministry who represented the Permanent secretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Alhaji Gaya Mahe.

 

CBAAC hosts 2011 Black History Month Festival in Ibadan

prof tunde babawale, director general of cbaac

Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC) has concluded plans to commemorate this year’s edition of the Black History Month (BHM) festival with a Public Lecture and a week-long exhibition.

Scheduled for the Trenchard Hall, University of Ibadan, Ibadan and Exhibition Stand at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, the event holds from February 24.

The lecture titled: “African Diaspora, African Unity and African Development”, is expected to be delivered by Prof. Lupwishi Mbuyamba, Executive Director, Observatory for Cultural Policies in Africa (OCPA), Maputo Mozambique.

According to the centre, the week-long line-up of activities ‘ promises to draw audience from across the various strata of the Nigerian society.’

Prof. Mohammed Mala Daura, Vice-Chancellor, University of Maiduguri, Nigeria has also been announced as Chairman of the occasion is, which also expects to draw Alhaji Abubakar Sadiq Mohammed, Hon. Minister, Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation.

CBAAC is a parastatal of the Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation.

CBAAC seals 5-yr pact with Nigerian Mission in U.S

adefuye (r) and babawale

Spurred by the need to further explore the cultural affinity between Africans at home and in the Diaspora, the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC) has entered into an agreement with the Nigerian Embassy in the United States to cooperate on cultural and educational matters.

The United States in particular, and the Americas in general are home to the largest community of Africans in the Diaspora.

The agreement was signed when the centre hosted the Nigerian ambassador to the United States, Prof. Ade Adefuye, who was on courtesy visit to the Broad Street, Lagos offices of the centre, penultimate Friday, January 21.

The agreement is also coming on the heels of a recent poll by a United States fbased-firm which confirmed that African-Americans were influenced by heritage or roots in their choices of destinations for travel outside their residences.

This finding also confirmed results by the Ghana, Cameroun, Senegal and The Gambia tourism agencies of an increased traffic of African Americans to their countries to retrace their roots, known technically as heritage tourism.

Against the backdrop of the fact that Nigeria is yet to fully exploit this veritable source of revenue by positioning itself to tap into the industry, as Badagry is fast losing the attention of government, the recent agreement signed with the Nigerian mission comes as cheery news to the Nigerian business community.

The MoU, covering broad areas of cross-border co-operation and inter-institutional working relationship hopes to explore the instruments of arts and culture for cultural diplomacy in the United States and the Americas to the benefit of Nigeria, Africa and the entire Black world.

Recognizing the importance of arts and culture, the ambassador, in a statement, reiterated the determination of the Nigerian Mission in the United States to partner with CBAAC to further its activities and showcase Nigeria’s art and culture potentials to the admiration of the African Diaspora and the rest of the world through the Nigerian Embassy in the United States.

To realize the objectives of the MoU, therefore, CBAAC and the Nigerian Mission in Washington will co-organize exhibitions, concerts, roundtable and conferences on issues of common concern to Black and African communities around the globe in various locations across the United States and the Americas.

Significantly, the agreement to cooperate on identified joint projects and activities is expected to bring benefits to the foreign policy objectives of Nigeria, in addition to contributing to institutional strengthening with a multiplier effect , that is, taking into account the experiences in the significant benefits of culture in diplomatic relations and the promotion of interest in Black and African culture in the United States and the Americas.

Of particular interest to the culture sector practitioners, the agreement with the Nigerian Mission will facilitate; Colloquia on the role of culture and Nollywood in the new Nigerian diplomacy as the two institutions shall seek collaboration with non-governmental organizations such as the Pan African Strategic and Policy Research Group (PANAFSTRAG), Lagos; African Diaspora Ancestral Commemoration Institute (ADACI), Washington; Constituency for Africa based in Washington, and World African Diaspora Union (WADU) among others.

Also, exhibitions in the USA to be jointly sponsored by CBAAC and the Nigerian Embassy in Washington is on the card. The exhibition may be held from time to time and in partnership with an African American Museum as well as National Alliance of Artists of Historically Black Colleges, Institutes and Universities (NAAHBCIU). This will involve FESTAC ’77 artefacts, Nigerian, African American as well as African exhibits;

Concerts where African Musicians from the East, West and North would be invited to perform in the USA. This could be in Washington, Maryland, New York or in Atlanta Georgia; and also on exchange of information with the two institutions expected to facilitate access to information on Nigerian culture.

The agreement according to the terms establishing it is expected to be concluded for a five-year period and shall be extended by tacit renewal for successive five-year periods, except where formally cancelled by any of the parties.

Of particular note, the centre, which is a parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Tourism , Culture and National Orientation,  has recorded similar milestone and far reaching agreements with governments and corporate and cultural institutions on cultural and educational cooperation in the past.

The agreement with the Nigerian Mission in the United States comes barely a year after the centre had wrapped up another deal with the government of Brazil on cultural and educational cooperation it had initiated in 2008.

It would be recalled that results of a poll released last month informed that cultural heritage played a key role when it comes to destination selection for African-American travellers, with more than one-third “very likely” to take a trip where stories and sites related to a heritage site history or roots.

The African American Traveler study, conducted by Washington, D.C.-based Mandala Research, also listed three primary segments within the African-American travel market: Curious and engaged; nearly a third of respondents (32 per cent) indicated the availability of African-American history sites and culture is a key factor in trip selection; Family reunion travellers—29 per cent attended a social or family event during their most recent trip; Business travellers—27 per cent had taken one or more business trips in the last 12 months.

Half of the travellers surveyed would be more inclined to visit attractions that offer more exhibits about black history and culture, and that percentage increases to 74 per cent among the “curious and engaged” subset.

These travellers place a high priority on offering educational experiences for children when travelling, with 46 per cent indicating it is very important for leisure trips to include activities that teach their children about African-American history and culture.

Entertainment magazines are effective mediums for reaching this market, with more than 40 per cent of travellers acknowledging they read Essence. Facebook is another popular outlet for African-Americans, with more than two-thirds indicating they read and post to the social website.

The online study conducted in December queried 1,018 African-American leisure travellers who took at least one trip within the United States in the past 12 months that was at least 50 miles away from home, or where the traveller spent at least one overnight and had shared or sole responsibility for travel planning.

The study was sponsored by the U.S. Cultural and Heritage Tourism Marketing Council and Shop America, in partnership with Louisiana Travel, Visit Baltimore, The Museum Store, Hester Group, the Center for Socio-economic Research and Education at Texas A&M, and the Henry Ford Foundation.

 

 

Unilag holds Art Entrepreneurship Workshop 2011

Department of Creative Arts, University of Lagos,  Akoka, Yaba, Lagos has announced plans to conduct its first art entrepreneurial workshop for students of the university as well as artists from within the Lagos area.

The workshop, scheduled to hold from May 3 to 9 will emphasize the teaching of participants’ skills to empower them in producing affordable, marketable and market-driven art.

According to organizers, participants will acquire an entrepreneurial advantage, often deemphasised in the art school curriculum.

“Some of the processes to be taught will include craft procedures that could be translated into critical artistic statements for the future.  The selected areas for this first workshop are: Repousse; Watercolour; Pastel painting; Ceramics/Jewellery and Printmaking,” said the organizers.

Continuing, the department informed that 70 participants are expected to attend the hands-on workshop with over half the number expected to comprise students of tertiary institutions within the Lagos area.

“Other interested artists within Lagos may also apply. Certificate of Participation will be made available for all participants and prizes will be awarded for the best work in each category.”

Kathleen Stafford, Peter Akinwunmi, Sam Ovraiti, Ariyo Oguntimehin, and a few other professional artists will be directing each workshop area.

Scheduled for the Parapet of the university’s Main Auditorium, open day/Exhibition of finished works will hold on May 9, with deadline for submission of application  fixed for March 30, just as successful candidates will be notified by April 6.

This workshop is supported by the Omooba Yemisi Adedoyin Art Foundation (OYASAF) and coordinated by Peju Layiwola of the Department of Creative Arts, University of Lagos.

Nigerians paint Georgia green on Martin Luther-King Day

Umbrella association of Nigerians resident in the American State of Georgia, the Alliance of Nigerian Organizations in Georgia (ANOG),  Monday, January 17,  joined DeKalb NAACP in Atlanta, including the rest of the world in celebrating late civil rights activist,  Martin Luther-King Jr.

The Martin Luther-King (MLK) Day is a  national holiday in the United States celebrating the lives and times of the civil human rights activist.

Paying homage to one of the “World’s Greatest Heroes,” at an MLK Parade and Rally, this is  the first time that ANOG will collaborate with DeKalb NAACP in celebrating Martin Luther King’s legacy.   Dr. King devoted his life to peace, non-violent struggle, civil rights activism.

According to the ANOG, the purpose of its members  participation in this parade/rally was to ‘enable our strong Nigerian Community to reach out more to the larger community, step out of our silo and foster bi-organizational relations for mutual benefits.’

In attendance at the Parade/Rally were Georgia senator Steve Henson of the 41st district, as well as Congressman Hank Johnson of the 4th district of Georgia, both of who expressed readiness to participate in future celebrations and particularly ANOG events.

At the end of the parade, a well-attended rally took place in which ANOG was duly recognized with the honour to make a speech.

In the speech at the rally, ANOG President, Titus O. Olowokere, praised the work of the late civil rights activist and challenged all to strive for excellence, probity and strength of character, ‘no longer blaming race as the limiting success ingredient.’

Alliance of Nigerian Organizations in Georgia (ANOG), President, Titus O. Olowokere, leading a procession of Nigerians resident in Atlanta as they joined Americans in celebrating the Martin Luther-King Day last Monday

Stakeholders task FG on endowment fund for book development

Rising from a meeting called to deliberate on the President Goodluck Jonathan’s book campaign recently launched for the promotion of the reading culture, writers, librarians, educational institutions and literary advocacy groups alike have charged the federal government to set up an endowment fund for book development in the country.

The call is contained in a 13-point communiqué issued at the end of the meeting by stakeholders in the book industry comprising publishers, librarians, booksellers, the academia, parents, NGOs, writers and schools, which held Monday, at the Banquet Hall, Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The book industry conference which was convened under the aegis of the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA), had as its sub theme; ‘When the President wants to bring back the book – what’s to be done?’ and was intended as follow-up to the President Jonathan’s Bring Back the Book initiative which was launched Monday, December 20, last year at the Expo Hall of the Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos.

The conference which acknowledged that books and reading contributed to professional and academic success: self-discovery; cultural awareness; self-expression; engaged citizenship and collective good, also resolved that the development of the publishing sector and revival of the reading culture must be a priority objective of the cultural, economic and educational policy of this country.

The conference considered papers on the following topics: – The business of the book;  The creative aspects of the book; Educational aspects of the book; and the promotional aspects of the book.

Part of the recommendations reached at the one-day confab included that; The nation deserves a functional National Library, while all 36 states and 774 local government councils should be mandated to establish and maintain functional urban, rural and mobile libraries.

It was also recommended that banks and other financial institutions in the country should be encouraged and supported by government to see the book industry as a challenged sector for special attention; that preferential or reduced postal rates should apply to books and periodicals for cheap and efficient distribution;

“ Government should support book fairs, literary festivals and reading campaigns around Nigerian books within and without the country’s borders; Legislative backing and funding should be provided to associations and non-governmental organizations at local and national levels in the promotion of reading initiatives.

“Government should patronize Nigerian and African authored books and should make use of the book chain for this purpose to enhance local capacity; Books published in indigenous languages should be actively encouraged and supported.

It was demanded that government should provide adequate resources to the relevant agencies responsible for the eradication of illiteracy; as well as that the Nigerian Copyright Commission should be well funded, staffed and equipped to effectively tackle copyright infringements.

“ Paper, machinery and equipment for printing and publishing of books should be exempted from customs tax and duties in order to make books more affordable; and  Government should set up a Book Advisory and Readership Committee (BARC) under the Presidency which will evolve ultimately into a Commission. The body will coordinate all efforts aimed at bringing back the book,” the experts recommended.

Chaired by publisher Kolade Mosuro, the conference was attended by stakeholders from the private and government sectors including:  former minister of state for education and author, Dr. Jerry Agada; Mr. Olakunle Sogbein, publisher; Alh. Nassarawa S. Abdullahi, Librarian/Government; Ms. Bibi Bakare-Weate, publisher.

Others are: Mr. Anote Ajeluorou, Journalist, Dr. Abba A. Haladu, Government representative; Mrs. Bimbola Dada, Librarian; Mr. Ben Tomoloju, Author/Journalist; Mr. Lanre Adesuyi, Bookseller; Mr. Toyin Akinosho of CORA; and Ms. Jumoke Verissimo (Secretary) Author.

Tragedy: National Troupe loses female artiste 2 days after fire incident

The play titled; The Contest, written and directed by Mike Anyanwu which showed at the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, last December was the last presentation of the National Troupe of Nigeria that featured the late Janet Iluyomade

Barely two days after fire destroyed a section of the male hostel belonging to the National Troupe of Nigeria inside the National Theatre Complex, Iganmu, Lagos, tragedy has again befallen the troupe as it has lost one of its artistes, Janet Iluyomade.

The popular artiste of the National Troupe of Nigeria who was reportedly involved in a motor accident last Saturday along the Ilesha-ijesha expressway was pronounced dead last Tuesday.

Iluyomade who was on her way to her home town in Ondo State to observe her annual leave eventually  died from injuries sustained in the crash after efforts to get her out of coma had failed.

The dancer from Ondo State famous for leading the popular Obitun dance, which originated from Ondo state and has become the repertoire of the National Troupe died at the University College Hospital Ibadan where she was referred to from a hospital in Ondo Town after the accident.

A single Christian, the late Miss Iluyomade was born in 1982 into the family of Chief Adegbola, the foremost custodian of the famous Obitun Cultural Troupe in Ondo State. She was recruited from Ondo state in 2003 to join the National Troupe as a dancer for an initial secondment period of two years.

However, she excelled as a dancer and so had her secondment period extended thrice. Until her untimely death, there was no dance performance without the fair skinned Janet whose hobbies include singing, dancing and playing football.

Reacting, Artistic Director of the National Troupe,  Mr. Martin Adaji who had earlier dispatched a team to Ondo as soon as it was reported that the artiste was involved in the accident expressed shock at the development.

Adaji described the late Janet as ‘humble, respectful, talented and resourceful’ and described her last performance as a maiden in Mike Anyanwu’s The Contest- presented in December at the National Theatre as splendid.

‘She shone like a star and was one of the star dancers of the show. She always puts on this infectious smile anytime she is performing the Obitun dance that has endeared her to many theatre lovers. She will be sorely missed’ Adaji said even as he assured that management will liaise with her family so as to give her a befitting burial.

‘We did everything humanly possible to keep her alive as soon as we heard of the unfortunate incident. We were working on moving her to Lagos but we were advised that it was not safe medically to do so because she was in coma and had to get out of it before she is moved. We initially felt relieved when she was transferred to the UCH in Ibadan but sadly she gave up there. May God grant her rest’ he said.

Her body has been deposited at the UCH morgue as  burial arrangements are awaited.

This incident comes barely two days after a fire incident wreaked havoc at a section of the National Troupe’s male artistes’ camp inside the National Theatre Complex, Iganmu, Lagos.

The incident which occored last Monday morning destroyed property belonging to the artistes said to be worth thousands of naira.

Located just a few metres away from the snack and drinks bar (abe-igi) at the National Theatre Complex, Iganmu, Lagos, the artistes-occupants were said to be currently on their annual leave at the time of the fire incident.

Although no life was lost in the inferno, the timely arrival of men of the National Theatre Fire Service Department, however, prevented the fire from spreading to the other blocks, particularly the two new blocks presently under renovation.

Although the cause of the fire has not yet been established, preliminary enquiries indicate that it may have been caused by power surge in one of the rooms at the block.

Artistic Director of the National Troupe, Mr. Martin Adaji, and members of the management team who visited the scene of the fire incident expressed surprise at the incident.

‘This has never happened before. I understand that efforts were made to put off the fire before it spread but the wind aided the fire in its spread. But we thank God that no life was lost. We will set up a committee to investigate the cause of the incident,’ Adaji said.

CORA plans confab on Jonathan’s book reading initiative

As a follow-up to the ‘Bring Back the Book’ initiative of the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan, the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA), has resolved to stage a one-day conference of stakeholders in the book industry and the creative and educational communities.

Project Director of CORA and conference coordinator, Mr.  Deji Toye, who announced this recently, also stated that the event is meant to evolve a workable document that could guide President Goodluck Jonathan and his team in their quest to encourage reading culture and as well place importance on the book as a source of knowledge acquisition and manpower development, according to.

The conference which holds Monday, January 17 at the Banquet Hall, Eko Hotels & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, is expected to attract a fairly large congregation of stakeholders in the relevant Indus tries, including from governmental agencies.

The theme of the one-day conference is; When the President Wants to Bring Back the Book: So What’s To Be Done Now?

It would be recalled that the ‘Bring Back the Book’ campaign launched on December 20 saw the President joining the Nobel Laureate Prof Wole Soyinka in a reading session for over 400 primary school pupils as well secondary school students drawn from as many as 100 schools around Lagos.

The programme also witnessed the formal presentation of President Goodluck Jonathan’s book: My Friends and I, Conversations on Policy and Governance via Facebook, during which about five top Nigerian contemporary music artistes performed to a crowd of about 5, 000 people at the new Expo Hall of the Eko Hotel.

According to CORA, the January 17 conference is a desired follow-up to ensure that the dream behind the project is kept alive even as the country gradually slips into the mood of electioneering ‘when we tend to forget every other critical aspects of our national life’.

The conference, stated CORA, aims to “gain the insight of stakeholders in the book industry on the current practical challenges of conceptualisation, production, distribution and consumption of books in Nigeria and its impact on the reading culture; and; Obtain suggestions on what steps may be taken to address the said challenges with a view to reversing the waning reading culture, such steps including –

Deliberations and suggestions at the conference will be presented to the ‘Bring Back the Book’ coordinators in the Presidency. It should also provide a reference point for a pan-industry advocacy for the revival of the reading culture and the revitalization of the book industry”.

“Participants are to be to be drawn from the entire value chain of the book industry including the following:  Publishers, booksellers and book dealers, authors, printers, libraries/librarians, book and literary event organisers/promoters (book clubs, literary festivals etc), educationists, renowned corporate promoters of book and literary initiatives, book and education-focused MDAs and Nigerian Academy of Letters”, stated CORA.

“To our knowledge, it is the first time in the last few decades that a Nigerian President has given a public, uncontroverted support to the campaign to return the book and the cultivation of its reading to a pride of place. This is significant in Nigeria where the success of any initiative often depends on a perception of interestedness or, better still, championship at the highest levels of government.

“Equally significant is that a sitting President has now drawn a link between book reading and literacy and even onward to national economic development. Trite as that connection might appear, we are not aware that recent economic recovery programmes and various visioning projects have made book reading as central to human capacity development (which has itself been often touted as core to the achievement of economic prosperity) as we see encapsulated in the above-quoted speech of the President delivered at the campaign event.

“Even more significantly, the strategy of taking the campaign ‘to town’ by the President will be recorded as a first, in which a matter of such communal significance will be canvassed on the streets before being thrown at policy bureaucrats. Indeed, Mr. President was reported as having dubbed the campaign a “citizens’ framework to bring back the book,” the culture advocate organization added.

iREP documentary film festival holds in Lagos

The international documentary film festival initiated with the objective of promoting independent documentary features will now hold between January 20 and 23 at Terra Kulture, Victoria Island, Lagos and also at the Lagos Business School in Victoria Island, Lagos respectively. Tagged the iREPRESENT or (iREP), it was earlier scheduled to hold last December.

So far about 10 renowned professional filmmakers have all agreed to be in Nigeria for the festival which also aims at promoting independent documentary features with emphasis on training and skill development to the benefit of the young, aspiring and practising film makers in Nigeria, especially for those with flair for Documentary films.

Some of the renowned professional filmmakers who have confirmed their participation include Jihan El-Tahri, producer of Behind the Rainbow, a documentary that has been programmed as the festival opening film; David Max Brown, producer of ‘The Manuscripts and Timbuktu’ directed by Zola Maseko from South Africa; Manthia Diawara, producer of ‘The Tropical House’ who is also giving the keynote address on the topic ‘Can Documentary Change the World’ and Mario Mabor, the Sudanese filmmaker who produced ‘The Rabbaba Man’.

Others on the list of confirmed participants are Talal Afifi, a film festival organiser who is leading a team of three from Sudan; Director of Mnet’s Great African Series Akin Omotosho, Professor Awam Amkpa who will be leading discussions in the workshop and symposium sessions, Issraa El-Kogali, producer of ‘In Search of Hip Hop and Lydie Diakhate, director of Real Life Documentary Forum who will be leading the workshop session.

Attending from Nigeria will be Sandra Obiago who will be presenting a collection of films from Communicating for Change (CFC); Femi Odugbemi who will be presenting three of his critically acclaimed documentaries—Oriki, Ibadan and Bariga Boys and Professor Tunde Babawale, Director General of the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilisation (CBAAC) who will be leading the team from CBAAC to present two films—Omo Alaketu and ‘Festac 77’ a UNESCO and Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) documentary film.

 

The premier film institution the National Film Institute will be presenting works by some of its students. The institute Governing Board Chairman who is also Managing Director of the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) Mr. Afolabi Adesanya, Fidelis Duker of the Abuja International Film Festival, Dr. Tunde Adegbola of the University of Ibadan, filmmaker Tunde Kelani and President of the Independent Television Producers Association of Nigeria (ITPAN) Mr. Busola Holloway have all confirmed their participation as lead speakers and discussant at the festival workshop and symposium.

The organizers also revealed that iREP 2010 will run as a 3-day event featuring paper presentations, screenings, networking, forums and workshops that will afford young filmmakers the opportunity to learn from industry veterans and build connections across the spectrum of creativity. According to them, each filmmaker will be expected to personally present their films and entertain questions from the audience, while also participating in the training and workshop sessions that have been scheduled to run in the course of the festival.

The theme for the maiden edition of iREP is The Impact of Documentary Production in a developing Society/Economy and it will have such other sub topics like its cost effectiveness vis a viz Film & Television production, Shooting techniques and tricks, and Career advisory.

According to the organizers, the workshops and panel discussions that will follow aims at introducing young filmmakers to the many opportunities documentary production offers. ‘Hence at least 4 professionals, specializing in key departments of documentary film making have been invited to conduct workshops and clinics in the course of the three day event’ the statement added.

iREP International Documentary Film Festival was founded by a board of directors which include; Femi Odugbemi, producer, director, past President of ITPAN (Independent Television Producers Association of Nigeria) & CEO of DVWORX STUDIOS; Jahman Anikulapo, culture journalist and activist, Programmes Director of CORA (Committee for Relevant Art) & Project Director of Culture Advocates Caucus, (CAC); and, Makin Soyinka, culture activist, filmmaker and Director of The Lagos Film Office — all are operatives of the West African Documentary Film Forum, WADFF – with a mission to develop and nurture the talent of young filmmakers in Africa and internationally.

The festival was also founded in recognition of the fact that that in spite of the high rate of debutants, many of whom lack appropriate knowledge in relevant departments of film making, there are still quite a good number of well-trained, talented and serious filmmakers in Nigeria who are willing and ready to work hard to reclaim the lost glory of the industry. ‘It is imperative that at this time in its socio-political history, Nigeria ought to stand up and be counted among the real filmmaking countries, not only in Africa but also in the entire world.

The example of countries like South Africa, Burkina Faso and many of the North African countries should serve as inspiration in this regard’ Dapo Kolade, Festival Director of iREP 2010 said in a pre-event press statement.

300 sign up for Kennedy Centre’s art seminar in Lagos

President of the Kennedy Center, who also doubles as an arts management guru, Michael M. Kaiser, is taking his show on the road next month with an Africa tour that includes stops at Lagos, Nairobi and others.

Over a period of a week, Kaiser is expected to give arts management seminars in five cities: Lagos, Nigeria; Kampala, Uganda; Nairobi, Kenya; Zanzibar, Tanzania; and Harare, Zimbabwe. The one-day sessions will be hosted by local arts leaders who have taken part in the Kennedy Center’s Summer International Fellowship program for arts managers.

Kaiser said in an interview that 300 people had signed up to attend the seminar in Lagos, 150 each in Nairobi and Harare, and sizable groups in the other cities, as well.

“When I started thinking about this tour I was expecting 20 people in each country,” he said. “But because there’s no arts management training available there, the word is spreading.” Kaiser has done training abroad before, in countries including South Africa, Egypt, China and Pakistan.

Asked if his advice to African arts managers would be different from his advice to Americans, he said that the different fund-raising situation required a distinct approach.

“There are virtually no individual donors in Africa, so that can’t be the mainstay of fund-raising the way it is in this country,” he said. “Instead, one talks about corporate donors; one talks about foreign governments, maybe European governments.”

He said that he would like the Kennedy Center to become more involved in Africa, possibly starting a long-term management training program in one of the cities he will visit. He said he also planned to recruit new fellows from Africa for the Kennedy Center’s summer arts management programme. “This is the first visit to these countries, not the last,” he said.

The trip is privately financed by the DeVos Institute of Arts Management at the Kennedy Center, which was endowed by Dick and Betsy DeVos.