African Export Import Bank : Côte d’Ivoire to Host next CANEX Weekend in November

Abidjan, 15 September 2022 - The next Creative Africa Nexus Weekend (CANEX WKND) will be hosted in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, from 25 to 27 November 2022, the Government of Côte d'Ivoire and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) have announced.

The announcement released today in Abidjan stated that Côte d'Ivoire had agreed to host CANEX WKND 2022, the three-day gathering of creatives from across Africa and the Diaspora being held as a prelude to the CANEX Summit planned as part of the third Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023), also scheduled to take place in Abidjan, in November 2023.

CANEX WKND 2022 represents an important milestone in Afreximbank's deployment and implementation of its CANEX programme, a multi-faceted intervention aimed at supporting and developing Africa's exciting and rapidly emerging creative sector.

The event will feature creatives, potential investors, industry leaders, creative industry businesses and government representatives and will provide a space for networking and experience sharing in music, film, fashion, crafts, visual arts, literature, gaming, VR and more for creatives from the continent and the Diaspora.

Building on the success of the CANEX held at IATF2021 in Durban, South Africa, in November 2021, CANEX WKND 2022 will further build bridges across Africa with a strong focus on connecting Francophone and Anglophone African creatives. Participants will be able to exhibit fashion, arts and crafts in a dynamic market; benefit from contacts with potential partners; and participate in panel discussions and high-level break away masterclasses while leveraging a range of networking opportunities.

"The Government of Côte d'Ivoire is fully committed to working with Afreximbank to ensure the success of CANEX WKND 2022 and IATF2023 for the promotion and expansion of the African cultural economy," said Souleymane Diarrassouba, Minister of Trade, Industry and Promotion of SMEs of Côte d'Ivoire. "Côte d'Ivoire is ready to welcome creatives from the continent. We are, therefore, pleased to invite all professionals of the African cultural and creative industry to Abidjan in November 2022."

Also welcoming the organisation of CANEX WKND 2022 in Abidjan, Françoise Remarck, Côte d'Ivoire's Minister of Culture and Francophonie, described culture as "one of the priority pillars of our National Development Plan, the NDP 2021-2025. It is a cross-cutting sector for which events like CANEX WKND can only contribute to its influence."

In her own comments, Kanayo Awani, Afreximbank Executive Vice President, Intra-African Trade Bank, highlighted the importance of supporting Africa's creative industries, saying that they represented sources of abundant jobs, especially for the continent's talented youth.

"The growing global demand for African creative content is yet to be matched by a comprehensive and systematic scaling up of value chains in this sector on the continent," said Mrs. Awani. "The CANEX Programme is a crucial vehicle that brings together numerous interventions to support and develop viable businesses in Africa's creative and cultural ecosystem. We invite all African and African Diaspora creatives to join us in Abidjan to take advantage of the many trade, investment, business and market opportunities on offer."

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For more information on CANEX WKND, visit: www.CANEX.Africa

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