UNESCO supports Great Trading Empires of Africa launch
Posted on 8th February 2018UNESCO Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSA) has commissioned a workshop in Harare to launch the‘Great Trading Empires of Africa’ project and call for pledges on 11th April 2018.
The project is well positioned to support the UNESCO Flagship Programme on ‘The General History of Africa’, developed since 1964 with a view to remedy the general ignorance on Africa’s history, and it popularizes some of the most significant heritage sites in history of Africa.
African empires once had extensive global trading networks from China to Brazil. This was however obliterated by the twin scourges of slavery and colonialism. The Great Trading Empires of Africa project thus seeks to restore these fascinating histories that can inspire the new economic vison of ‘The Africa We Want’ (cf AU Agenda 2063).
Spearheaded by Daves Guzha of Creative Native and Simon Bright of Zimmedia, the project will document in various multi-media formats Africa’s trading histories.
The launch which UNESCO is supporting will be attended by development partners, representatives from pan-African heritage management and arts organisations, as well as ambassadors of various African countries, Brazil, Europe and China, all reflecting these ancient trading links.
GREAT TRADING EMPIRES OF AFRICA
Africa’s role in the global economy: Learning from the past for the future