A partnership between the AU and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched a call for applications to ensure creative voices find a space in the public awareness campaign marking the 20th anniversary of the AU, known as AU20.
Under the theme “Our Africa, Our Future”, two residency programmes powered by Africa No Filter will offer the space, time, resources and support needed to produce a broad spectrum of fiction, narrative non-fiction and poetry, as well as paintings, sculptures, drawings, photography, digital art, video and graffiti.
Visual artists will be hosted at the Loman Art Gallery in Dakar, Senegal, while the writers will be hosted at the Library of Africa and The African Diaspora (Loatad) in Accra, Ghana.
Residencies are scheduled to take place in November and are open to African citizens from all member states of the AU.
Leslie Richer, director of information and communications at the AU Commission, said, “The writers and artists will depict their vision of the continent or their country within the context of the successes of the AU in its 20-year history. They will also show how art and literature have played, and can play, a role in fostering African prosperity, integration and peace.”
The artistic outcomes of the residencies will be featured in two public events to showcase and discuss the written and visual works, an e-book anthology as well as an exhibition at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
They will also be amplified through the AU’s digital platforms.
Jide Okeke, regional programme co-ordinator at UNDP Africa, said: “The AU20 project is in line with the AU vision of elevating citizen voices in the continental and global arenas in pursuit of sustainable development.
Storytellers and artists have the power to connect citizens to institutions. We hope this partnership with the AU will bring the AU closer to the African people.”
What Writers Receive
All travel costs to, from and within Ghana.
Accommodation and board at Loatad in Ghana.
Access to the library’s extensive resources.
A stipend of US$1 000 (about R17 700).
Trips to relevant places of interest while in Ghana.
Meetings with key people in the Ghanaian/African literary space.
The application deadline is September 30.
IOL