TwitterFacebookInstagram

Culture

Music, book and film reviews from the last 3 months

Laura Mvula. A Gospel for the Third Millennium.

A voice that  radiates all the moods and colours of Africa. She is one of the brightest stars of contemporary pop. A rather limited description in that her music is a combination of the Gospel music she grew up with and the soul music of the masters, the real old jazz-blues and danceable funky, with…

Read more

Herbs & Plants. Xylopia aethiopica. A Spicy Herbal Medicinal Plant.

It possesses great nutritional and medicinal values. The plant is used in the treatment of a number of diseases. And also as a body cream.  Xylopia aethiopica which is commonly referred to as the grains of Selim, Ethiopian pepper or African grains of Selim, is an evergreen, aromatic tree that can grow up to about…

Read more

Yasmine Hamdan. A Vagabond Spirit.

“With her powerful voice and unique style she succeeded in bringing together the treasures of traditional music and the electronic sounds of European pop-rock”. For some time now, Yasmine has lived in multi-ethnic Paris but she has lived and criss-crossed many cities and cultures in her life of forty three years. It started in Beirut…

Read more

Belgium. The Museum of Africa, a revisited version of the continent.

The Museum of Africa aspires to be an open space for discussion of the sad colonial past and contemporary African art. There has not been lack of criticisms. The colonization of Congo – the current Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – and the rule of neighbouring Rwanda, which then included Burundi, is one of…

Read more

Herbs & Plants. Entada abyssinica. A resourceful herbal medicine.

It is used as medicine, source of fibre, and wood. But also in the treatment of numerous diseases and disorders. It is a low-branching deciduous shrub with a flat, spreading crown and usually grows up to about 10 metres in height. The stem-bark is grey to reddish, the leaves alternate, bipinnate with apex, round to…

Read more

Senegal. The Great House of African Art.

The Museum of African Civilisation was founded in Dakar: it contains African art from its origins to the present day. The dream of Léopold Sédar Senghor. Over four-fifths of the artistic patrimony of the continent, the experts say, is to be found in Western museums, art galleries and private collections. It is the result of…

Read more

Uganda. Bobi Wine. Rapper and Opposer.

His songs criticise the government and corrupt politics. Young people listen to him and have elected him to parliament. A threat to President Museveni who tries to silence him. It is Sunday and he is sitting in his garden wearing his red beret on his head, he is giving an interview to a national channel.…

Read more

Ghana. The great Mosque of Accra.

Financed by Istanbul, it also contains other structures: a congress hall, administration offices and a library. The presence of Turkey in Africa is nothing new: educational and social projects and the construction of mosques are being carried out in about thirty African countries. It rises majestically, beautiful and immense. The Accra mosque is the largest…

Read more

Herbs & Plants. Acacia sieberiana. To relieve back pain.

It is an important plant for medical use. But it is also used to make furniture and ink. Acacia, commonly known as paperbark thorn or paperbark acacia, is a small to medium-sized tree native to tropical Africa, in the north to Ethiopia, and in the south to countries including South Africa, Swaziland, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. The…

Read more

Mexico. Poblano Chili here we come.

When most people think of Mexican food, the first thing that comes to mind may be chili peppers and fiery hot dishes that threaten their taste buds. Although chilis are essential in Mexican cuisine throughout the country, they are not necessarily added for spiciness. More often than not they are used to enhance flavour. Many…

Read more

Music and Dance. Tango, African Rhythm.

  • Written by:

Music and dance in Latin America has much of what is African. An example: the Tango. The Tango was invented in the slums of European immigration in Buenos Aires a century ago; closely tied to an instrument such as the bandoneon (a musical instrument of the reed and bellows family, inspired by the concertina and…

Read more

Western Africa.The confraternity of Knowledge.The mysterious world of the Donso hunters.

  • Written by:

They are seers and traditional healers with a vast knowledge of medicinal plants, spells and fetishes. They represent an example of moral integrity. Today they enjoy a high position in Malinke society, especially in the rural environment. African societies have always lived in a close relationship with the world of visible powers and that of…

Read more

Advocacy

Myanmar. Paul Sein Twa. Preserving Ancestral Territory.

“What we would like to achieve when we talk about peace. Peace means self-determination. Peace means biological conservation. Peace means revitalization of our culture and…

Read more

Baobab

Inca. The Island of the Sun.

At that time Viracocha, the creator God, looked down upon the earth. He saw it was bare, shrouded in impenetrable darkness, for daylight did not yet…

Read more

Youth & Mission

Celebrating African youth.

“Young Africans are playing an active role in bringing social change in the continent. They are contributing daily to the benefit of their communities and nations…

Read more