Post Tagged with "Africa"

From rural Mali to the world

Yaya Coulabaly is part of a group called Fasokan Segou which uses the Internet to connect with the world outside Mali. Here he tells us more about the project, and life in rural Mali.

Hello Yaya, thank you for taking the time of answering our questions. Can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?

Hello and first of all a big thank you to Eddie Avila from Rising Voices and Lucy Chatburn from PocketCultures for giving me the opportunity to talk of rural Mali and our blog.

Yaya Coulibaly

My name is Yaya Coulibaly, I’m 27 and am agronomist (agricultural technician and engineer). I play football and love soft music as it allows me to work on my data without losing focus.

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Ethiopian art and culture

Addis Journal is dedicated to “Arts & Culture, Life & Society” of Addis Ababa and Ethiopia. The author Arefe says:

“it chronicles the emergence and growth of Ethiopian painting, drawing, sculpture and decorative arts.”

Ethiopia has a lively arts scene – amongst other things you can read about cutting edge Ethio-jazz musicians and the Art of Ethiopia exhibition recently held in the Addis Ababa Sheraton hotel.

Read more:
More East African blogs from Blogs of the World
An Eritrean village in photos
The rains continue in Zambia

How Ramadan is celebrated in Nigeria

Nigeria is a secular country, with a mixture of Christian, Muslim and animist religious beliefs. Certain Nigerian states also observe the sharia law. Despite the multicultural nature of Nigeria, Ramadan is observed in pretty much the same manner across the country.

A typical day of fasting consists of increased prayers, charity and refraining from consuming any food or liquids, sinful thoughts or deeds, and sex. It is a time for meditation, forgiveness, and refocusing one’s attention on God.

Fruit is a major part of Ramadan in Nigeria. Many Nigerian muslims break their daily fast with fruit before settling down to have a full evening meal. As a result, Ramadan is accompanied by a hike in price of fruit. In Lagos State, the commercial hub of Nigeria and former capital city, 100 Naira (£0.40 pence) now buys 3 or 4 oranges instead of usual 6 as local traders capitalise on the increased demand.

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What Madagascar is actually about

Tahina’s blog (started after she attended the Rising Voices Foko project blogging workshop) is about Madagascar and Malagasy people – she writes:

“I’ve noticed that the movie have eclipsed my Island either on the internet or on people’s mind. It’s a fact and I’d like to change that.”

Snapping a church play (photo by Tahina)

So here’s one girl’s take on what Madagascar is actually about. Photos are Tahina’s strong point, and I enjoyed some of the moments she has captured on this blog. What do you think?

Read more:
More blogs from Madagascar on Blogs of the World
Interview with Malagasy blogger Lalah
An Eritrean village in photos

Sketches from Tanzania

Dar Sketches is a project by artist Sarah Markes to show ‘street level’ Dar es Salaam. Sarah has lived in Dar es Salaam for 7 years and with this project she aims to capture the vibrancy of Dar Street life, which she says is “a wonderful, rich and quirky realm all to itself”.

Dukas (corner shop) from Dar Sketches

There are plans to expand the project into a book featuring creative writing by Tanzanian and international authors living in Dar es Salaam. Sounds interesting? More about that here.

Read more:
Nshima and Zambia’s food culture
Street food in Nairobi, Kenya
More blogs from East Africa on Blogs of the World

Celebrating the nation of poets

Playing on Somalia’s historical reputation as a nation of poets, Poet Nation is a new site dedicated to Somali art and culture, with the goal of being “a platform for positive conversation that promotes peace, harmony and traditional Somali values to the modern generation”.

Most contributors so far are Somalians living abroad and contributions are a mix of video posts and text. Take a look and experience some Somalian culture with your own eyes.

Read more:
Other East African blogs on Blogs of the World
Melbourne: our city of literature
Manila’s flourishing contemporary art scene