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| Stephen Rwagweri at the global meeting |
Engabu
Za Tooro attended the just ended global conference on Pan-African perspectives for the protection and
promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions which was organized by the
International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD) in the
West African Country of Togo.
The
6th IFCCD Congress which was held on 9th – 10th
October, 2019 at Hôtel école Lébénin, Lomé, Togo which was attended by hundreds
of delegates from across the world aimed at discussing the
implementation of the 2005 UNESCO Convention in the African, public policies
for culture, civil society participation in public policy development, addressing
the major challenges for the diversity of cultural expressions, discussing the
challenges of civil society elsewhere in the world in safeguarding and
revitalizing culture, discussing the new realities of the globalized market for
the dissemination of digital cultural content and the challenges for cultural
diversity on the internet and facing the challenges of the future through
innovation.
Uganda was represented by Engabu Za
Tooro Executive Director, Stephen Rwagweri Atwoki who is currently spearheading
a two year UNESCO co-funded project aimed at safeguarding and revitalizing the
implementation of the
documentation and revitalization of Empaako naming rituals and practices among
the Banyoro, Batooro, Batuku, Banyabindi & Batagwenda communities of
Western Uganda.
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| Some of the international delegates at the global meeting |
Engabu
Za Tooro Executive Director, Stephen Rwagweri Atwoki who is also CIOFF Uganda
president presented a case for Uganda discussing the protection of diversity of
cultural expressions in Uganda to hundreds of international delegates from 78
countries of the world.
During
his presentation Rwagweri highlighted some of the issues affecting the growth
of cultural sector in Africa like failure by governments to prioritise culture
sector, inadequate funding and manipulation of artists to serve state interests
which kills their talents.
Some
of the notable delegates at the 6th IFCCD global meeting were West African ministers of culture, African Union
commission, UNESCO, International Organisation of La Franchophonie and International Federation of Coalitions for
Cultural Diversity.
The 6th IFCCD global meeting
was supported by the International
Organisation of La Francophonie, the
Union Économique et Monétaire Ouest Africaine (UEMOA), the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications of the
Government of Quebec, the French Coalition for Cultural Diversity, the Togolese
Coalition for Cultural Diversity, the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural
Expressions (Canada), the Government of Togo, the Government of Canada, the
Délégation générale du Québec à Dakar, the National Commission of the Francophonie in Togo and the Austrian
Coalition for Cultural Diversity.
