15 African Poetry Ambassadors to attend World Poetry Movement Congress in Medellin, Caracas

Correspondent,

CAIRO: In the crucial search for the unity of the poetic forces of Africa, and to make much more visible the immense contribution of the poetry of that continent to the world, the Virtual Congress of the World Poetry Movement (WPM) Africa was held on January 21-22, 2023.

About 50 poets attended the 2 days congress, of them there were more than 25 national coordinators representing that number of countries of the continent, and number of international poets and observers’ participants.

The World Poetry Movement is a coordination of international poetry festivals, poetry projects and poets from 150 countries that, through the globalization and realization of poetic actions, seeks to contribute to the construction of a new humanism for the twenty-first century, permanently promoting intercultural dialogue through the fraternal and universal language of poetry, a path to the transformation and renewal of consciousness, for the benefit of a humanity at peace, reconciled with nature and aware of both cultural diversity and the sense of justice and social inclusion in the processes of cultural development of all the inhabitants of the planet.

The coordinating Committee WPM AFRICA had Ayo Ayoola-Amale, (Ghana), Ashraf Aboul-Yazid (Egypt), Zolani Mikiva (South Africa), Siphiwe Nzima (Lesotho), Vera Duarte Pina (Cape Verde), Recaredo Silebo Boturu (Guinea Ecuatoria), Nimrod Bena (Tchad), Ismaël Diadié Haïdara (Mali) and Khalid Raissouni (Morocco).

The election of African 15 representatives at the 1st WPM Congress – Medellin / Caracas next summer gave the list of 15 African poetry ambassadors, to represent the continent. The full list has been announced as following: Ayo Ayoola-Amale, (Ghana), Ashraf Aboul-Yazid (Egypt), Zolani Miki (South Africa), Siphiwe Nzima, Lesotho), Vera Duarte Pina (Cape Verde), Nimrod Bena (Tchad), Ismaël Diadié Haïdara (Mali), Khalid Raissouni (Marruecos), Saley Boubé Bali (Níger), Omar Farouk Sesay (Sierra Leone), Achour Fenni (Argelia), Etanat Awol (Ethiopia), Paul Liam (Nigeria), Recaredo Silebo Boturu (Equatorial Guinea) and Tarek Eltayeb (Sudan).

The congress days were organized by the World Poetry Movement, the International Poetry Festival of Medellin, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Communications and Information of Venezuela.