Selam’s regional director, Lucy Ilado will participate in a panel discussion on 4 May as part of the 9th World Summit on Arts and Culture, which will be held in Stockholm, Sweden from 3 to 5 May 2023. The event is organised by the Swedish Arts Council (SAC) and the International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (IFACCA).
The panel, titled Freedom of Expression in the Era of Social Media, will look into how the creative sector protects its practitioners and the integrity of art in the social media space. The discussion will also attempt to understand how the benefits of social media could be maximised to create real and lasting positive change, even as questions are asked of the various platforms on whether and how they discharge their responsibilities appropriately.
Ilado will be joined by Ouafa Belgacem – founder and CEO, Culture Funding Watch, Christian Christensen – Professor of Journalism Studies, Stockholm University (Sweden/USA) and Martin Inthamoussu – Arts manager, consultant on creative economy (Uruguay). The panel will be moderated by Anette Novak – CEO, Swedish Film Institute (Sweden).
The World Summit on Arts & Culture takes place every three years and is a global forum that encourages exchange between Art Councils, the civil society and the cultural sector in different countries. This year the theme is Safeguarding Artistic Freedom. The primary audience is executive leaders within the arts councils, leading policy makers, researchers and managers and practitioners from the arts.
“Artistic freedom is a right that is recognized and protected by international law,” the director general at the Swedish Arts Council Kajsa Ravin said. “ The reinforcement of artistic freedom is a global political challenge.
The World Summit 2023 provides a platform for global exchange of experiences and to explore the various factors that affect the conditions for artistic freedom. We will initiate and deepen the dialog to enforce artistic freedom globally. The conference will consist of seminars, meals and evening activities.”
The World Summit 2023 program has been developed in collaboration with an international council, consisting of leaders from the international art and cultural field and representatives from the Swedish Arts Council and IFACCA. The program is available here.
About Selam
Selam is a Pan-African organisation headquartered in Sweden with offices in Addis Ababa and Nairobi. Selam’s work is based on five pillars: Advocacy for Democracy, Human Rights & Freedom of Speech, Culture as a vehicle to Promote Peace and Reconciliation, Institutional Building, Tech and Digitalisation and Job creation through Skills Training. Selam implements projects in partnerships with culture and civil-society organisations based on three core strategies: Capacity development of culture actors, Enabling culture production and distribution, as well as Advocacy targeting decision-makers. With support from the Swedish Arts Council, Selam has established the Pan-African Network for Artistic Freedom (PANAF) – a Pan-African voice for organisations working with artists and cultural producers for artistic freedom on the African continent. The initiative involves cooperation with organisations in eight countries in Africa – Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Nigeria, The Gambia, Zambia, and Mozambique.
