Music In Africa Foundation unveils ACCES conference

ACCES will be held in a different African city every year. This year it will take place in Dakar, Senegal, on 17 and 18 November 2017. The much-anticipated gathering will see industry players from across the African continent converge on the Senegalese capital to exchange ideas, discover new talent and accelerate the shaping of the music sector on the continent.

ACCES 2017 is aimed at benefiting local participants and visiting delegates who will take part in training workshops, panel discussions, presentations, networking sessions, exhibitions and visits to key music industry hubs in Dakar. The ACCES programme will also showcase some of Senegal’s most promising artists at a number of live performances, which will conclude with a concert on 18 November.

“We are excited to introduce ACCES at a time when we are seeing a lot of enthusiasm from African music professionals to collaborate and exchange,” Music In Africa Foundation director Eddie Hatitye said.

“There is much appetite across the continent to invest in African music but we have very limited pan-African platforms that bring us together to spark those exchanges. In the past few years, however, more initiatives have been launched in this context and it is important that we continue the momentum, with a strong desire to improve the sector and not to compete.

“We are confident that ACCES will become an important annual gathering for African music professionals and we look forward to a successful beginning in Dakar this November.”

Keynote

Iconic Senegalese musician Baaba Maal will be the keynote speaker at this year’s event. Baaba Maal will address a diverse audience comprising musicians, festival bookers, funders, legislators as well as representatives of NGOs, record labels and various businesses on the first day of the event. A full list of delegates representing more than 15 countries will be announced on musicinafrica.net in September.

Since its inception in 2013, the MIAF has endeavoured to support the African music sector through its online information and exchange portal, musicinafrica.net, and by hosting various offline activities such as instrument building and repair workshops and concerts in Africa and Europe. This year, the foundation has also begun providing mobility support to musicians from countries affected by conflict via its recently launched Music In Africa Connects (MIAConnects) project.

The idea to start a pan-African music conference started in 2016 when the MIAF extended its Annual General Meeting (AGM) programme into a conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The event was attended by international delegates and the keynote address was delivered by legendary Ethio-jazz musician Mulatu Astatke.

ACCES 2017 partners will include the Goethe-Institut and Siemens Stiftung as well as local players such as the Association of Musicians of Senegal (AMS) and Grande Ourse Productions.

For more information, or if you would like to attend the conference, visit the ACCES 2017 official website.