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By Joyce Mukucha
Zimbabwe is set to host the International Conference of African Cultures (ICAC)2021 this November which is aimed at exploring the issues around restitution, return and repatriation of African cultural property held outside the continent.
This was communicated by the Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Monica Mutsvangwa during a post Cabinet briefing on Tuesday.
“Cabinet considered and approved the report on the Hosting of the International Conference of African Cultures (ICAC)2021: 23-25 November 2021 as presented by the Dr. S.G.G. Nyoni, Acting Minister of Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation.
“The nation is informed that Zimbabwe intends to host the 3rd Edition of the International Conference on African Cultures (ICAC) under the theme,” Africa speaks: Dealing with Repatriation from an African Perspective” The conference will run from 23 to 25 November 2021 in Harare at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe (NGZ).
“It is undisputed that these cultural artefacts are carriers of deep personal meanings and national importance to the countries of origin more than where they are currently domiciled,”she said.
Zimbabwe, she highlighted, intends to ride on this platform to gain traction in its international engagement and re-engagement efforts by affording Africa in particular, and the World in general, to define repatriation and interrogate colonial injustice which resulted in the displacement of African cultural goods.
“The conference will incorporate aspirations of Africa’s Agenda 2063, the Charter for African Cultural Renaissance as well as the 2021 African Union theme “Arts, Culture and Heritage: Levers for building the Africa we want,” added Minister Mutsvangwa.
In line with this, Minister Mutsvangwa said the resolutions of the conference will feed into the African Union Plan of Action on Culture and Creative industries.
The second International Conference on African Cultures was held in September 2017 at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe in Harare under the theme which provided various players with an opportunity to interrogate the future of art institutions in the face of the socio-economic challenges the nation is facing.
