Dear Friends of Ake
We thank you for your support. We are grateful to all those who have been on this journey to reaching new heights. We appreciate the loyal followers who have been at our side from day one and the new followers who have joined along the way.
The aim of the 2017 This F-Word edition was to foster solidarity amongst women across the continent, to provide an opportunity for women to share their individual journeys, to explore barriers that women encounter in Africa and to celebrate the art of storytelling.
The festival showcased the very best of contemporary African literature, poetry, music, art, film and theatre, whilst highlighting the work of Ama Ata Aidoo, a true trailblazer.
We received literary insights from the likes of international guests such as Nnedi Okorafor and Zinzi Clemmons; we learnt the complexities of feminisms from Jude Kelly, Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, Mona Eltahawy, Pumla Gqola and Jessica Horn; we were captivated by performances by Yolanda Mercy, Maimouna Jallow and Mara Menzies; we got our hands dirty with Haneefah Adams’ interactive art and we cried at the genius of poets like Koleka Putuma, Poetra Asantewa and Nkateko Masinga.
The musical concert had us up on our feet with homegrown talents Celeste, Joyce Olong, Adunni Nefretiti, Aramide and the amazing Salawa Abeni.
For the Life & Time series, we had the privilege of hosting Ama Ata Aidoo who graced the cover of the annual Ake Review. Her live interview with Molara Wood was a highlight for both guests and attendees who were enthralled by her wisdom, intelligence, wit, kind hearted nature and fierce feminism.
The fifth edition also saw the launch of Ouida Books, a publishing house which caters for eclectic readers. New titles that we’ve taken under our wing include Hadiza Isma El Rufai’s An Abundance of Scorpions, Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀’s Stay With Me, Dami Ajayi’s A Woman’s Body is a Country and Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death.
The magic and the love felt at the festival was immeasurable!
We thank the thousands of participants who took time out to celebrate the power of women with us. We thank our partners, sponsors, supporters, artists, volunteers, technical team and journalists for making This-F Word a splendid success.