Season of African Cultures in France: Africa 2020

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Africa2020 Season: an invitation to look at and understand the world from an African perspective

During a speech he gave in Ouagadougou on 28 November 2017, President Macron announced that an African Cultural Season in France was being organized for 2020. Initially planned in 2020 but postponed to 2021 due to the public health context created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Africa2020 Season is part of a renewed partnership between France and the African continent. The aim of the event is to help French people learn more about contemporary Africa and its creativity through a series of events held all over France, focusing on young people and emerging talents.

Presentation of the Africa2020 Season

The Africa2020 Season is a pan-African and multi-disciplinary project, based on innovation in the arts, science and entrepreneurship. The event celebrates women and is particularly targeted at young people.

N’Goné Fall, a curator, essayist and consultant in cultural engineering is the Season’s Commissioner-General and created this event as an “invitation to look at and understand the world from an African perspective”. The Season’s operational implementation is provided by the Institut français, an agency of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Culture.

Video: Interview with N’Goné Fall, Commissioner-General of Africa2020 Season

An unprecedented Season in France dedicated to all of Africa

Dedicated to the entire African continent, Africa2020 Season is a laboratory for production and the spread of knowledge and ideas. Built around 23 issues from the 21st century divided into five themes, it sets out the perspectives civil society in Africa and its recent diaspora in all sectors of activity. It is the sounding board for these agents of change who are rewriting the rules, experimenting with new relationships with the world and impacting modern societies.

In addition to its original approach that involves the entire continent, all projects presented will be created jointly by African professionals in collaboration with French agencies.

The season’s cross-cutting priorities will be:

  • Placing humans at the centre: the Season prioritizes projects designed as inclusive collaborative platforms through the Africa2020 Headquarters (HQ), Pan-African cultural centres with a multi-disciplinary programme;
  • Women: this Season is placing women in the spotlight through a series of “Women Focus” projects designed by African professionals alongside African female creators, intellectuals, scientists and entrepreneurs;
  • Education: the Season prioritizes young people through 285 teaching projects, in partnership with the Ministry of National Education, Youth and Sport, UNESCO, France Volontaires and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD).

The Africa2020 Season in figures

  • More than 1,500 events organized across France, between December 2020 and September 2021
  • More than 4 million spectators
  • 81 cities in metropolitan and overseas France
  • 200 African agencies and 183 French agencies
  • over 450 projects in the arts, science and entrepreneurship
  • 15 Africa2020 Headquarters
  • 22 “Women Focus” projects
  • 11 African volunteers, 11 teaching projects and 274 projects led by the Ministry of National Education, Youth and Sport