Top speakers, panelists for ACEC

The African Creative Economy Conference (ACEC), taking place in Cape Town from 6-9 October, have announced its top speaker and panelist lineup. The Conference aims to focus attention not only on the continent's creative industries as economic drivers; but also highlight their potential contribution to the eradication of poverty and underpinning of democracy and human rights.

Speakers

Moroccan Minister of Culture, Mohamed Amine Sbihi;
senior cultural officer of the African Union, Angela Martins;
UNESCO technical expert on cultural policy, Zimbabwe, Stephen Chifunyise;
Dr Ammar Kessab, a governance expert at the African Development Bank
Dr Israel Kodiaga, director of programmes research and strategic development at the African Centre for International Studies in Kenya;
Ojoma Ochai, assistant country director, British Council, Nigeria

Panelists

Three panellists should spark debate when they discuss key international and African players in the African economy, and the nature, size and impact of their interventions:

Kenyan-born, London-based Anver Versi, editor of African Business magazine,
Professor Lorenzo Fioramonti, associate professor of International Political Economy at the University of Pretoria and associate fellow at the United Nations University, Belgium.
Dr Dauoada Cisse, research fellow at the Centre for Chinese Studies, University of Stellenbosch who specialises on issues of globalization and Sino-African trade flow.

The second day's keynote topic - Culture as an integral element of sustainable development - will be debated by representatives of the European Union, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC).

Carolina Quintana, a facilitator for partnerships and networking in the UNCTAD Creative Economy Programme, and others, will discuss why they support the creative industries, what they are doing to promote the sector, and their perspectives on culture in the post-2015 (Millennium Development Goals) International Development Agenda.

Round table of international funders

A round table of international funders includes Anne-Lise Langoy, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Idriss Nor, Doen Foundation; Jasper Walgrave, Pro Helvetia; Dr Noha El-Mikawy, Ford Foundation; and Dr Katharina von Ruckteschell, Director of the Goethe Institute, Sub-Saharan Africa.

Registration fees are R2239/delegate from Africa, R3278/delegate from Central, America, South America or Asia, and R6000/delegate from Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East.

The event takes place under the auspices of Arterial Network (individuals, organisations, donors, companies and institutions engaged in the African creative and cultural sector). It will be implemented by the Cape Craft & Design Institute.

For more, view the Conference brochure, the programme, go to the website www.acec2013.org.za or email az.gro.idcc@3102CECA. Follow @acec2013 on Twitter and go to the Facebook page.