Music In Africa Foundation elects new board and chairperson

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the cancelation of the ACCES music conference, where the AGM is traditionally held, the yearly meeting took place virtually on 26 November, with members of the Foundation casting their votes to elect a new board.

The members on the board, representing the music scenes from different regions, are new chairperson Yusuf Mahmoud (Tanzania/Zanzibar), deputy chairperson Maimouna Dembélé (Senegal), new treasurer Ghita Khaldi (Morocco), Ade Bantu (Nigeria), Aziza Ongala (Tanzania), Faisal Kiwewa (Uganda), Dr Nadine Siegert (South Africa) and Jens Cording (Germany). Siegert and Cording serve on the board on behalf of the MIAF’s founding partners Goethe-Institut and Siemens Stiftung respectively.

The office bearers are as follows:

• Chairperson – Yusuf Mahmoud  
• Deputy chairperson – Maimouna Dembélé
• Treasurer – Ghita Khaldi 
• Board member – Ade Bantu 
• Board member – Aziza Ongala
• Board member – Faisal Kiwewa
• Board member – Dr Nadine Siegert
• Board member – Jens Cording

Leadership

Yusuf Mahmoud is the first professional representing the East African music market to serve as the Foundation’s chairperson. He is responsible for creating Zanzibar’s world-famous Sauti za Busara festival. The Busara Promotions founder began organising anti-apartheid concerts in the UK in the 1980s and is widely credited for revitalising the Zanzibari music scene. Mahmoud was first elected to the MIAF board in 2018.

Maimouna Dembélé, who served as MIAF chairperson from 2018 to 2020, will take the deputy chairperson role, which was occupied by outgoing board member Serge Maboma. Raised between Senegal and the US, Dembélé has vast knowledge of media best practices. She has worked for Radio 7 FM and played a pivotal role in the development of the hip hop industry in her country.

Ghita Khaldi was elected to the board in 2018 and will now serve as the Foundation’s treasurer. She takes the reins from interim treasurer Robert Hooijer. Khaldi heads up Afrikayna, an organisation that promotes intercultural exchange and artist mobility. She is also in charge of coordination and production of Boulevard Festival in Casablanca, Morocco.

Ade Bantu, who first joined the board in 2016, was re-elected for a second time. He brings in music industry experience, having run many musical projects in Germany and Nigeria, including the Afropolitan Vibes concert series in Lagos.

Aziza Ongala has been working closely with artists, creatives, cultural practitioners, NGOs and governments over the past 10 years. Passionate about representing traditional music and new forms of expression, she is the founder of the Ongala Music Festival in Bagamoyo, Tanzania, which celebrates the life and art of her father, the late guitarist and singer Remmy Ongala.

Faisal Kiwewa is the founding director of Bayimba Cultural Foundation. Under his guidance, Bayimba has trained and supported arts practitioners in East Africa, and created numerous platforms to celebrate the arts in Uganda, including Bayimba International Festival of the Arts and performing arts market DOADOA.

Jens Cording and Dr Nadine Siegert boast many years of experience in the international arts scene, having developed and implemented numerous cultural projects around the world.

To read more about the MIAF's current board members, click here.