THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
All roads lead to the southern German city of Munich on Saturday, 22 July for the Yoruba Cultural Festival 2017.
Guests from Nigeria and across Europe are expected at the one-day event which will feature several activities, including cultural performances, an exhibition and a discussion forum. The occasion, which will be chaired by the Acting Head of Mission of the Nigerian Embassy in Berlin, will also be graced by the presence of representatives of Nigerian and German governments.
Special Guest of Honour is Prof Adebisi Balogun, former Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria, while Guest Speaker is Prince Abimbola Adegboyega Ogunwusi, Sooko Laekun of Ile Ife and a brother to the Ooni of Ife, Alayeluwa Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, Ojaja II.
The Sooko Laekun, who is the head of the Princes and Princesses of Ife and the right hand man of the Ooni, will speak on the importance of royal institutions in upholding the Yoruba culture. He will also talk about the efforts of the Ooni to unite Yoruba people both home and abroad and promote greater peace in Nigeria.
The Festival will also witness the formal launching of the Yoruba Progressive Community Bayern e.V. (AYPC), Germany. Even though the group, which is the organiser of the Festival, has been active for some time, it will be introduced officially to the public at the launch.
According to a press statement, launching the AYPC “is an effort, to promote unfettered cultural exchange and help the German public come to the understanding of the Yoruba values and heritage”.
Yoruba people are an ethnic group native to South-Western and North-Central Nigeria as well as Southern and Central Benin. They are believed to number over 40 million people, majority of whom are Nigerians.
Yoruba constitute about 21% of Nigeria’s population, making them one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa.
The global Yoruba Diaspora consists of two main groups. The relatively recent migrants who have been moving to the United Kingdom, the United States and other Western countries since the 1960s and a much older population dating back to the trans-Atlantic slave trade mainly found in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Saint Lucia, Jamaica, Brazil, Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago.
Sola Jolaoso
The Yoruba Cultural Festival 2017
Date: Saturday, 22 July 2017 – Time: 2 pm
Venue: Kultur-Etage Messestadt (Messestadt West U-Bahn Station),
Erika-Cremer-Str. 8,
81829 Munich, Germany
For further information, all enquiries should be directed to:
Mr Alfred Fatai Wilson, General Secretary, AYPC Bayern
Phone: +49176 24963218, +491607880005
Email: alfredwilson106@gmail.com
