Africa today is full of young artists and cultural entrepreneurs who evolve on the job, and very often in the informal sector.
Among these batch of cultural entrepreneurs, a large number is made up of women who find it eventually more difficult to make their voices heard in Africa.
The urgency today is to strengthen the leadership and empowerment of women in Africa. It also focused on creating favorable conditions for their freedom of expression and their participation in public life. This will promote the emergence of women leaders and officials capable of claiming their rights. Women in leadership positions will thus become influencers and leaders of change in their respective societies.
For the emergence of our societies, we need to give women a voice to express themselves and assert themselves.
About the Program
It is in this logic that the African Culture Fund has chosen to launch the pan–African program LEWO (Leadership and Empowerment for Women), dedicated to the professionalization and capacity building of women artists and cultural entrepreneurs in Africa. This program will strengthen their leadership capacity and contribute to their empowerment, by providing necessary tools for access to international markets.
LEWO is a continuation of the ACF ACADEMY program, launched in July 2021 and which has so far enabled the incubation and capacity building of 20 cultural managers from West Africa and 12 young visual artists from North Africa.
Thus, the African Culture Fund is launching a call for applications, in partnership with the Institut Kôrè des Arts et Métiers (IKAM Ségou). The academy is selecting 16 female artists and cultural entrepreneurs from West Africa and Central Africa to take part in BOOT CAMP #3 scheduled in Ségou from March 2023.
What We Aim to Achieve
This call aims to contribute to look strength and competitiveness of 16 female artists and cultural entrepreneurs from West and Central Africa. This will be achieved through a professional training camp including capacities in cultural management, leadership, personal branding, and emotional intelligence (followed by mentoring and coaching Opportunity for one year).
Beneficiaries of the ACF ACADEMY program are certified by the Institut Kôrè Institut des Arts et Métiers (IKAM) of Mali. To this end, participants will benefit from a Professional Aptitude Certificate called Kôrè–Qualité at the end of the ACF ACADEMY training, providing them with the skills necessary for the professionalization of their profession. The Kôrè–Quality Certificate is recognized by the IKAM network and its partners in all regions of Africa.
Content of Bootcamp #3 | LEWO 1 Program
This third boot camp (training camp) of the ACF ACADEMY, will offer participants innovative educational content, coaching, and mentoring sesions. They will be adapted and focused on specific leadership skills, during 2 weeks, in the creative city of Ségou (Mali).
In the program, there will be thematic workshops, practical case studies, and scenarios, but also one–to–one sessions with recognized African personalities in the field of culture and entrepreneurship.
This boot camp will provide young professional entrepreneurs in art and culture with tools and keys adapted to contribute to their empowerment.
At the end of the boot camp, the program will grant a scholarship of 2,000 euros to each of the winners. Their development will also be monitored through mentoring. Mentorship will be provided by experienced professional men and women, great managers and leaders from all parts of Africa
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
– Be between 21 and 40 years old,
– Be a female artist (regardless of discipline) or entrepreneur with at least five years of experience, practicing and residing in Africa,
– Be a national of one of the West African or Central African countries namely;
Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea–Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo.
Angola, Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Sao Tome and Principe, Chad.
– Be available from March 2023 to participate in the various LEWO Program training and networking activities
How to Apply
Applicants should send their file to the email address applications@africanculturefund.net, no later than November 25, 2022.
The file must be written in one of the following languages: French, English
The file should include:
– Resume
– Copy of your identity document or other equivalent documents (indicating Surname and First name, Nationality, Date of Birth)
– Cover letter (350 words maximum)
– Brief presentation of the artistic approach (for artists) or biography (for entrepreneurs)
– Portfolio: presentation of works and/or photos of previous projects (12 pages maximum)
Deadline : 25th November, 2022
For more information on the grant click here