Africa Day Breaks Record with 15,000 visitors!
Africa Day 2017 (May 25-28) concluded in Hamburg on Sunday with a record number of visitors – over 15,000! This four-day intercultural event, held for the sixth time, took place on the Wandsbeker market square in a vibrant tent city with an open-air stage.
“Africa Day is a celebration of African cultures,” says Sylvaina Gerlich, board member of the integration association IMIC e.V. and organizer of Africa Day 2017. “With its colorful, musical, and culinary diversity, it’s a special way to promote understanding and integration.” Held under the patronage of Hamburg entrepreneur Rolf Salo (Salo AG), the event saw Africans, Afro-Germans, and Hamburg residents come together for a joyous celebration in sunny weather. Prominent guests included Dr. Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, former First Lady of the Republic of Ghana; Integration Minister Aydan Özoguz; and artists such as Obama Prize winner Okyeame Kwame (Ghana), René Tenenjou (Lion King / Cameroon), and Nana Achampong (Ghana).
Discussions were held on the G20 summit, featuring guests like Prof. Christa Randzio-Plath, Dr. Abdul-Rashid Hassan Pelpuo (former minister), and Prof. Seth N. Asumah (State University of New York). A consensus emerged: Africans should confidently seek independence, and African countries should work together to assert their interests. Prior to the main event, “Africa Day” kicked off for the second time with an “Africa Day Business and Investment Forum” at Hamburg’s Grand Hotel Elysee (May 24th). Around 100 entrepreneurs from countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Togo, Cameroon, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Germany engaged in discussions about investment in Africa and medium-sized business commitment.
“The focus was on networking between entrepreneurs and political decision-makers,” says Frank Heinrich, advisory board member of IMIC e.V. “The goal is to create meaningful projects and joint ventures that create jobs in Africa and for migrants in Germany.”
The organizer of Africa Day is IMIC e.V. (Intercultural Migrants Integration Center e.V.). Sylvaina Gerlich and her team have been inviting people to this event since 2012. Africa Day is part of the cultural and integrative offerings of the Migrant Center IMIC e.V. “Every year,” Gerlich explains (member of the Hamburg Integration Advisory Board and deputy chairwoman of the Wandsbek Integration Advisory Board), “Africa Day commemorates the founding day of the African Union by the heads of state and government of thirty independent African states on May 25, 1963.”
IMIC e.V. is a non-profit association that advises and supports migrants in nearly all social areas. They assist with contacting authorities and institutions and offer tutoring services, language courses (German and local languages), PC courses, senior citizen meetings, and information events – all contributing to integration. IMIC’s work with African communities (around 65,000 Africans and Afro-Germans in Hamburg) has established them as a leading social NGO in Hamburg, experiencing ever-increasing demand for their services
