“Lettres d’Afrique: changing the narrative”
Frankfurt, 5 October 2018 - With exhibitors from more than 100 countries, Frankfurter Buchmesse brings literature and culture from around the world to Frankfurt. Publishers and authors from African countries will be present this year with 34 exhibitors from 19 countries: Angola, Benin, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Cameroon, Congo, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Togo and Zimbabwe. On the days of the fair (10-14 October 2018), more than 20 events will take place at various locations. These will revolve around different African book markets, the rights and licensing business, as well as feature writers from African countries. Prominent authors and speakers will also come to Frankfurt: Award-winning Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie will be the guest speaker at Frankfurter Buchmesse’s Opening Press Conference, and Achille Mbembe, historian and political scientist from Cameroon, will talk with Michelle Müntefering and Nadja Ofuatey-Alazard on the Weltempfang stage. Offering a programme for both trade visitors and the general public, a stage organised by Alliance Culturelle Africaine (ACA) will promote international networking and ensure that literature from the African continent reaches new reader groups.
Extensive series of events
The African stage “Lettres d’Afrique: changing the narrative”, organised by the Agence Culturelle Africaine (ACA), is a partnership between the German-Cameroonian publishing house AfricAvenir, Subsahara Verlag, African Books Collective and Bureau international de l’édition française (BIEF). The objective of this new stage is to promote international networking among publishers. Francophone and Anglophone writers will therefore be presented along with authors writing in African languages, and the programmes of numerous publishing houses will be showcased as well. The programme starts on Wednesday, 10 October 2018 with an event marking the historical connection that has existed between Frankfurter Buchmesse and Africa’s literary world since 1980. That is the year the event “Africa, a continent asserts its identity” took place at the book fair, a key catalyst for founding the non-profit organisation Litprom. Participants include international organisations that support the African publishing industry, such as the Association pour le Développement de l’Education en Afrique (ADEA)/World Book Alliance, the International Publishers Association the African Publishers Network (Apnet). Other events will examine international programmes for supporting the African publishing industry; the African children’s book market; e-commerce for African publishers; and the postcolonial legacy.
All events can be found online in the Frankfurter Buchmesse calendar of events: https://www.buchmesse.de/en/service/calendar-of-events(opens in a new window)
The press release by the Agence Culturelle Africaine with more details about Lettres d'Afrique can be downloaded here: https://fbm.cloud.booklan.de/index.php/s/gPCgm2PQRX9uIvd(opens in a new window)
> Find further press releases here > https://www.buchmesse.de/en/press/press-releases(opens in a new window)
> Find further press photos here > https://www.buchmesse.de/en/press/press-material(opens in a new window)
About the Frankfurter Buchmesse
The Frankfurter Buchmesse is the international publishing industry’s biggest trade fair – with over 7,300 exhibitors from 102 countries, around 286,000 visitors, over 4,000 events and some 10,000 accredited journalists and bloggers in attendance. It also brings together key players from the fields of education, film, games, STM, academic publishing, and business information. Since 1976, the book fair has featured an annual Guest of Honour country, which showcases its book market, literature and culture to attendees in a variety of ways. The Frankfurter Buchmesse organises the participation of German publishers at around 20 international book fairs and hosts trade events throughout the year in major international markets. Access to the Business Club, with its premium services, networking events, and conferences, such as THE MARKETS, is available exclusively with a Business Ticket – the premium option for B2B visitors. THE ARTS+ was launched in 2016 as a fair, business festival and international meeting place for the culture and creative industries. It aims to exploit the potential of digitalisation for creative content and to develop new business areas. Frankfurt EDU, the international education platform of the Frankfurter Buchmesse, presents innovative concepts, content and technologies for the future of learning. Campus Weekend at the Frankfurter Buchmesse is dedicated to university students. The Frankfurter Buchmesse is a subsidiary of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (German Publishers & Booksellers Association). https://www.buchmesse.de/en(opens in a new window)
Contact for the media:
Press & Corporate Communications, Frankfurter Buchmesse
Katja Böhne, Vice President Marketing & Communications, Phone: +49 (0) 69 2102-138, press@book-fair.com(opens in a new window)
Kathrin Grün, Director Communications, Phone: +49 (0) 69 2102-170, gruen@book-fair.com(opens in a new window)
Ines Bachor, PR Manager, Phone: +49 (0) 69 2102-189, bachor@book-fair.com(opens in a new window)