Sound Connects Fund holds successful Maputo conference

The conference was the fourth and biggest industry event held under the Sound Connects Fund, a project implemented by Music In Africa Foundation and Goethe-Institut, and funded by the ACP-EU Culture programme. This 40-month funding intervention was designed to professionalise, capacitate and provide funding opportunities, and improve access to markets for the CCIs across nine Southern African countries, namely Angola, Botswana, eSwatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

In the past few years, the SCF’s annual grantee networking events brought together representatives from each funded project to participate in capacity-building and networking among each other and with the creative sector in the respective host cities: Johannesburg, South Africa (2022), Lilongwe, Malawi (2022) and Windhoek, Namibia (2023).

In 2024, the three cohorts of grantees gathered in the Mozambican capital for a magnified networking experience. The weeklong programme of activities, which began with two days at Southern Sun Maputo, comprised a skills development workshop, peer reviews and a session facilitated by Gina Collis to identify synergies and collaborative income-generating projects.

These two days were programmed specifically for the direct SCF network and wrapped up with a compelling session by ACP-EU Culture Programme team leader Gian Giuseppe Simeone, who engaged directly with the recipients. The discussion was facilitated by Avril Joffe, an active member of UNESCO’s panel of experts for cultural policy and governance.

“These are really important moments when all energies come together. This conference, where all 36 grantees of the Sound Connects Fund are present had a particular meaning from that point of view,” Simeone said.

The public conference activities, which were also livestreamed to an online audience, took place at Galeria do Porto de Maputo, and was attended by professionals from Mozambique and beyond who operate in a variety of creative industries including music, film, animation, publishing, TV and gaming, among others. The audience was treated to discussions that unpacked solutions to common challenges such as capacitating people living with disabilities, access to markets, recording music and traditional ceremonies, administering revenue streams, and developing curriculums for teachers in traditional instruments.

Apart from the informative panel discussions, delegates were able to interface with the funded projects, which were exhibited at the conference. The conference concluded with a train excursion to the 17th Marrabenta Festival, offering first-timers an unforgettable experience.

The SCF Conference was a stimulating experience for the professionals who attended what was a necessary intervention for the burgeoning CCIs in Southern Africa.

“The Music In Africa Foundation’s focus has been primarily in the music industry. Through the Sound Connects Fund, of course, we are getting into other disciplines,” Music In Africa Foundation executive director Eddie Hatitye said. “It is clear to us that the creative sector is possibly at its peak in terms of level of production, quality of goods, and more importantly, visibility. In the last five years or so we’re really starting to see a lot of interest in African creative products.”

With the Sound Connects Fund drawing to a close, a documentary will be released soon that tells the fund’s success stories and advocates for the continued support of the development of the CCIs in Southern Africa.

About the Sound Connects Fund

Implemented by the Music In Africa Foundation (MIAF) in partnership with Goethe-Institut, the SCF is a multifaceted initiative that aims to accelerate development and increase the capacity of the CCIs in Southern Africa by offering financial support in the form of different sized grants and comprehensive capacity-building programmes to eligible creative and cultural industry organisations based in Angola, Botswana, eSwatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The SCF is made possible with funding from the ACP-EU Culture programme, a project implemented by the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the European Union (EU).

About the Music In Africa Foundation

The Music In Africa Foundation is a pan-African, non-profit organisation based in Rosebank, Johannesburg, with satellite offices in East, West and Central Africa. The MIAF’s mission is to support the African music sector through promoting knowledge exchange and creating opportunities and capacity for music professionals. The Foundation does this in two ways: digitally via the Music In Africa website (www.musicinafrica.net) and offline through training programmes, artist mobility programmes, workshops, concerts, lobbying, conferences and other related initiatives.

About Goethe-Institut

Goethe-Institut is the cultural institute of the Federal Republic of Germany with a global reach. The institute promotes knowledge of the German language abroad and fosters international cultural cooperation. It conveys a comprehensive picture of Germany by providing information on Germany’s cultural, social and political life.

About the ACP-EU Culture Programme

Implemented by the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and funded by the European Union, the ‘ACP-EU towards a viable cultural industry’ programme (ACP-EU CULTURE) intends to boost the potential of the cultural and creative sector and its contribution to the social and economic development of the ACP countries.