Accra — Event: Second Edition of the All-African Movements Assembly (AAMA)
Dates: August 29th to 31st, 2024
Venue: Hill View Guest Center
Country: Accra, Ghana
Participants: African movements, activists, human rights defenders, thought leaders, and international allies
Theme: "Towards Pan-African Solidarity: United we Stand, divided we fall"
About Africans Rising
Africans Rising is a global Pan-African movement of movements, people and organizations working for Unity, Justice, Peace and Dignity. Launched in 2017, the movement provides a space for progressive African civil society leaders and groups engaged in various civic struggles to convene, connect, collaborate, share knowledge and build solidarity among African people.
Through Pan-African mobilization, campaigns and movement building, we are not only working to defeat the oppressive system but to create the alternative that must replace it. The movement has over 40,000 members both individuals and organizations in all 55 countries in Africa and over 100 countries and territories in the diaspora. By working together and pulling resources, movement members are well placed to create impactful change for the future.
Event Summary
The All-African Movements Assembly (AAMA) 2024, taking place from August 29th to 31st in Accra, Ghana, is a crucial gathering of African movements, activists, and human rights defenders. As Africa faces a rapidly shrinking civic space, with increasing crackdowns on dissent, harassment, abductions, and even killings of activists, the need for collective dialogue and unified action has never been more urgent. AAMA 2024 will convene under the theme "Towards Pan-African Solidarity: United We Stand, Divided We Fall" to address these pressing issues.
Building on the success of the first edition, AAMA 2024 will expand its scope to tackle emerging challenges while also capitalizing on new opportunities for cross-border solidarity. The assembly will feature a series of dynamic discussions and workshops on critical topics including climate and ecological justice, ethical governance, economic justice, reparations, gender justice, and the expansion of civic space. Additionally, the event will explore the vision of African unity, including the concepts of a borderless Africa and a single African currency, and will address the ongoing struggles against racism and modern-day slavery.
Participants will include some of Africa's most prominent activists, thought leaders, and grassroots organizers, as well as representatives from Pan-African organizations and the African diaspora. Together, they will engage in deep, strategic conversations aimed at strengthening the continent's movements and building a more just and equitable future for all Africans.
The assembly will also provide a platform for networking and collaboration, offering attendees the chance to forge new alliances and reinforce existing ones. Through these efforts, AAMA 2024 seeks to foster greater Pan-African solidarity and ensure that the voices of African movements are heard loud and clear on the global stage.
There will be 400 physical participants and at least 1000 virtual participants with critical representation criteria being gender, regional and age.
Key Issues to be addressed:
The issues we face as a people are interdependent parts of an oppressive system. Thus, a systems approach is required to fully understand the scale of the challenge before us and to devise an alternative system that will ensure a just and dignified life for all. The AAMA will serve as a platform to explore the systemic interrelations between these issues, allowing us to develop solutions, campaigns, and processes that are sufficiently intersectional.
- Advance Climate and Ecological Justice: Address Africa's disproportionate vulnerability to climate change and challenge the global systems of exploitation that drive ecological destruction. The assembly will focus on creating sustainable and equitable solutions, including adaptation strategies, just transitions, and renewable energy, while rejecting false solutions that harm the masses.
- Defend and Expand Civic Space: Respond to the increasing repression of civic freedoms in Africa, particularly post-COVID-19. AAMA will strategize on protecting and expanding the civic space, ensuring the rights to free expression, association, and protest are upheld across the continent.
- Promote Ethical Governance: Advocate for ethical, transparent, and accountable governance as a foundation for economic development and human dignity. The assembly will address the threats posed by corruption, coups, and the erosion of democratic governance, seeking collective solutions to these challenges.
- Achieve Economic Justice: Confront the persistent poverty and inequality in Africa, exacerbated by global exploitation and local corruption. AAMA 2024 will focus on creating pathways to economic justice, ensuring that Africa's vast resources benefit its people rather than foreign entities or local elites.
- Mainstream Gender Justice: Integrate gender justice into all aspects of movement-building, recognizing the central role of women and other marginalized genders in the struggle for social justice. The assembly will build on existing feminist initiatives and develop new strategies to combat patriarchy and institutionalized gender oppression.
- Demand Reparations for Historical Injustices: Continue the fight for reparations for the crimes of slavery and colonization, addressing the ongoing impact of these injustices on African communities. AAMA 2024 will support efforts to hold former colonial powers accountable and heal the generational trauma inflicted on African peoples.
- Foster African Unity and Advocate for a Borderless Africa: Work towards a unified Africa with free movement, challenging the legacy of colonial borders that divide the continent. The assembly will assess the progress of the Borderless Africa campaign and explore the potential of a single African currency to promote economic development and solidarity.
- Combat Racism and Modern-Day Slavery: Address the enduring legacies of racism and colonialism, both within Africa and globally. AAMA will strategize on dismantling the systems of racist domination that persist in economic, legal, and diplomatic institutions, and on eradicating discrimination based on descent.
- Strengthen African and African-Diaspora Solidarity: Build and mobilize solidarity among Africans and the African diaspora to collectively tackle shared challenges. The assembly will translate this solidarity into practical models of organizing, reaffirming the diaspora's role as the sixth region of Africa and advancing the Pan-African agenda.
Key Speakers and Panelists
Kumi Naidoo, Africans Rising Ambasador & Human Rights Advocate.
Samia Nkrumah, President of the Kwame Nkrumah Pan-African Center (KNAC)
Pierre-Christophe Gam, Polymath artist and dreamer
Participants:
The AAMA will bring together 400 participants physically and at least 1000 online drawn from:Movement representatives, Activists, artists, journalists, trade unions, civil society actors, Diaspora representatives, human rights defenders, allies, Pan-African organizers etc. At least one delegate from each country in Africa, 60% of whom should be youth and 51% women.
Event Highlights
Keynote Addresses: Prominent African leaders, activists, and thinkers will deliver speeches on the importance of Pan-African solidarity and civic space.
Fireside Chats and Healing Sessions: Healing sessions, guided by feminist experts, provide activists with tools for mental health and well-being, addressing the trauma they often face in their work.
Panel Discussions: Engaging panels on topics such as ethical governance, climate and ecological justice, and the role of African unity in combating modern-day slavery.
Training and Breakout Sessions: Interactive sessions focused on building skills and strategies for advocacy, organizing, and movement-building.
Cultural performance and artistic expressions: Showcasing African art, music, and performances that celebrate the continent's rich cultural heritage.
Networking Opportunities: Dedicated time for attendees to connect, collaborate, and build alliances.
Our social platforms:
- X - @AfricansRising
- Facebook -Africans Rising
- TikTok - @africans_rising
- Instagram - @africans_rising
- Linkedin - Africans Rising
- Youtube -@africansrising6143
Media Contacts:
Ann Njagi, Communications & Media Lead
Mobile +254721707722
Email: ann@africans-rising.org