Lockdown and listen: Classic African albums to discover, old and new

, ,

What is a better way to spend your time during lockdown than discovering or revisiting some of the finest music to have come from Africa? From famous classics to lesser known works, from the throbbing sounds of the West African belt to the eclectic mix reaching out from the North, Africa’s sonic history is rich and varied. The creators of these works have a few things in common: the ability to create influence; to speak to audiences across age, time and language; and to last.

And so, for your consideration (and with a choice of links to where you can listen, though not all services are available everywhere):

Gigi (2001) – Gigi (Ethiopia)

Criticised upon initial release for departing radically from the foundations of Ethiopian popular music – traditional pentatonic scales with jazz and R&B – this self-titled record by Ejigayehu Shibabaw assembled a who’s who of American jazz talent (including Grammy winner Herbie Hancock) and updated the Ethiopian pop sound to include dub and electronic music. The result is a fiery, unyielding wake-up call that moves from uplifting passages to mellow soulful ballads.

Miriam Makeba (2008)  – Mama Africa Origins (South Africa)

Zenzile Miriam Makeba (4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, actor, UN goodwill ambassador, and civil rights activist. Born in Johannesburg, Makeba was forced to find employment as a child after the death of her father. She had a brief and allegedly abusive first marriage at the age of 17, and gave birth to her only child in 1950, as well as surviving an episode of cancer. Her talent for singing had been remarked upon when she was a child, and she began singing professionally in the 1950s, with the Cuban Brothers, the Manhattan Brothers, and the all-woman group The Skylarks, performing a mixture of jazz, traditional African melodies, and popular music from the West.

Soro (1987) – Salif Keita (Mali)

Produced by Ibrahima Sylla, Salif Keita’s international breakthrough Soro is credited for defining the template for how African albums would sound after it. It blends the traditional griot music of Keita’s Mali with Euro-pop sounds and shiny up-to-date production. The record’s dynamic energy – brass riffs, soaring synthetic keyboards, electric guitars, drums, drums and more drums – is contrasted with Keita’s soothing, stunning vocal delivery.

C’est La Vie (2012) – Khaled (Algeria)

Perhaps the world’s most famous Arab voice, Khaled is best known for tunes like Aïcha and Didi. You will have heard them even if you don’t quite know who Khaled is. C’est La Vie isn’t the record that quintessential Khaled fans will return to every year, but having sold a whopping 4.6 million copies worldwide, it may well be his most accessible. For C’est La Vie, Khaled worked with Moroccan-born producer RedOne, famous for his work with Lady Gaga. The result is a blend of huge stadium arena anthems with Algerian dance styles.

Mystic Dance (2018) – Amira Kheir (Sudan)

Mystic Dance is the latest album from the performer who has been christened the diva of the Sudanese desert. With the record, Amira Kheir continues to wear influences from her multicultural heritage, mixing traditional Sudanese tunes with soul, jazz, Nubian and middle Eastern harmonies. Mystic Danceshowcases a musician increasingly confident in her abilities as a singer and composer. Warm and soothing, Mystic Dance is near perfect fusion and a compelling journey worth taking.

Celia (2019) – Angelique Kidjo (Benin)

Angélique Kidjo’s latest, the Grammy winning Celia, is a towering homage to the work and music of Celia Cruz, perhaps Cuba’s most prominent vocalist. Kidjo’s album may have been released last year, but the songs that inspired it span several decades of Cruz’s stellar career, from 1960 to her rise to the title of queen of salsa and her 1998 late career hit “La Vida Es Un Carnaval”. With assistance from drummer Tony Allen and the West African Gangbé Brass Band, Kidjo reimagined Celia’s work upping the Afrobeat sensibility and making it in her own image.

Coupé Bibamba (1998) – Awilo Longomba (DR Congo)

Awilo Longomba has set dance floors afire from Lagos to London. Coupé Bibamba is considered one of the most influential and commercially successful records to come from Africa. It cemented Longomba’s reputation as the king of techno soukous. 20-plus years later, anthems like the title track and “Gâté le Coin” have lost none of their seductive, compulsive power. Resistance is futile whenever this record comes on.

Dunya (2004) – Malouma (Mauritania)

At home, Malouma wears many hats. Griot, performer, politician, activist and feminist icon are just a few. Dunya is a representation of a lot of her interests, bridging the gap between traditional folkloric songs and modern recordings. The music on Dunya is an intoxicating blend of guitars, harps, flutes and skin drums with traditional instruments like the tidinit. The album is an inclusive affair, highlighting the diversity and fluidity of modern-day Mauritania.

Neria Soundtrack (2008) – Oliver Mtukudzi (Zimbabwe)

Oliver Mtukudzi co-starred in and wrote the music for the 1993 Zimbabwe film Neria, a drama about a woman denied the right to inheritance after her husband passes away. The soundtrack album contains eleven tracks of vintage Mtukudzi. Performing predominantly in his native Shona but also in English, Mtukudzi is in his terrific form with his distinctive husky voice sharing centre stage with his dazzling guitar. Lead single Neria remains one of his biggest hits.

Source: African Arguments 

/0 Comments/by

Free Unlimited data for NHS staff

,

During this time of the coronavirus pandemic, NHS workers are doing a great job under immense stress. To better help them, EE is offering unlimited data until 9 October.

Whilst there is a lot of uncertainty about how long Covid-19 will last, EE wants to ensure that they have an offer that is above and beyond the expected time frames of this pandemic as they didn’t want to create an offer that was short term only.

All that NHS workers have to do is register online with a valid NHS email address to receive the new offer – this includes those staff already receiving discounts on their monthly mobile plans from EE. They’ll then receive a text message confirming that the unlimited data is on their account, until 9th October 2020.

Marc Allera, CEO of BT’s Consumer Division, said:

“We hope this gives NHS staff one less thing to worry about. They can keep in touch with friends and family and use the internet without worrying about using up their data. Along with the discount we already provide, this is a thank you from all of us at EE to those in the NHS that are working so hard for us all.”

EE is doing this to give all NHS staff the comfort that they can keep connected with loved ones during these difficult times. Running out of data is the last thing anyone needs right now, especially those on the front line.

/0 Comments/by

Simple Book on Explaining Coronavirus to children

, , ,

Ever wondered how you could explain explain Coronavirus to children?

Here is a great book that helps you do so.

This book was made by Nosy Crow to meet the needs of children and their families. was edited by by Elizabeth Jenner, Kate Wilson & Nia Roberts and illustrated by Axel Scheffler

Loader Loading...
EAD Logo Taking too long?

Reload Reload document
| Open Open in new tab

Download Document [6.72 MB]

/0 Comments/by

100 Hot Meals For 100 Families Across Nottingham

,

On Saturday 25th, to mark and honour the beginning of the Holy Month of Ramadan, we provided over 100 hot meals to over 100 families across Nottingham.

The project is led by our partner GAIN Diaspora and the food is distributed to both Muslim and non-Muslim families and needy individuals. It will go on for the next four weeks.

Working with as many different and diverse communities as we can, we delivered food to groups in need across Nottingham, including refugees, asylum seekers, the destitute and those unable or untitled to access government support, provisions or funding.

For the next the four Saturdays, we will continue to provide hot meals to make sure communities are supported in these indeterminate and uncertain times. We see it as essential that all communities across Nottingham come together to help each other, spreading positivity and maintaining cultural solidarity.

Abdoulie Jah, from GAIN Diaspora has said, “There are families with children and loved ones who not only are suffering financially everyday but are often going without and lacking the everyday essentials they need. If we can feed one person then that is one less hungry person to worry about. We all need to do our bit together and we will all come out of this together.”

Across the globe local expressions of solidarity appear to be spreading as society takes it upon themselves to act on behalf of others in need.  This epoch calls on us to share our resources and step into mutual aid.

It is also important that everyone gets food that is suitable and ideal for them. Asking people to eat what they are not used to is often a difficult choice and many of people find themselves bound to make these choices.

One of the over 100 recipients was Aisha, a mother who lives with her husband, 2 kids and 2 relatives in the same household. Aisha said that:

“We are very grateful of these meals. Though they say beggars should not be choosers, the food we have been receiving is sometimes not cultural appropriate as we never know if it is Halal or not. It is also high in sugar, salts and sometimes one is uncertain of the ingredients. Don’t get me wrong, we are not ungrateful but it is vital that we all get healthy and appropriate meals especially at this time when we cannot go out and do our own search and networking to seek help for these quality meals”

 

Food is a sensitive issue, especially for most ethnic minorities who perceive food in a holistic manner – personal, spiritual, political and social. Eating, tasting and smelling those foods one is used to makes people feel whole and links them to their roots and history.

“Many of us are miles away from our communities, friends and roots. A taste and smell of those traditional dishes and the foods we love is a great source of nostalgia. It is a way for us to embrace our immigrant side of identity.” said Aladdin, a Sudanese asylum seeker who received the first batch of meals.

To request hot meals in the coming Saturdays during the Ramadan period, please complete this form.

GAIN Diaspora are raising funds to meet this commitment and you can help by contributing towards their fund.

/0 Comments/by

COVID-19: An open letter from African intellectuals to Africa’s leaders

, ,

100 leading academics and writers call on leaders to govern with compassion and see the crisis as a chance for a radical change of direction.

Credit: Paul Saad.

The threats that are hanging over the African continent with regards to the spread of COVID-19 demand our individual and collective attention. The situation is critical. Yet this is not about mitigating another “African” humanitarian crisis but to diffuse the potentially damaging effects of a virus that has shaken the global order and put under question the bases of our living-together.

The coronavirus pandemic lays bare that which well-to-do middle classes in African cities have thus far refused to confront. In the past ten years, various media, intellectuals, politicians and international financial institutions have clung to an idea of an Africa on the move, of Africa as the new frontier of capitalist expansion; an Africa on the path to “emerging” with growth rates that are the envy of northern countries. Such a representation, repeated at will to the point of becoming a received truth, has been torn apart by a crisis that has not entirely revealed the extent of its destructive potential. At the same time, any prospect of an inclusive multilateralism – ostensibly kept alive by years of treaty-making – is forbidding. The global order is disintegrating before our very eyes, giving way to a vicious geopolitical tussle. The new context of economic war of all against all leaves out countries of the Global South so to speak stranded. Once again we are reminded of their perennial status in the world order in-the-making: that of docile spectators.

Like a tectonic storm, the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to shatter the foundations of states and institutions whose profound failings have been ignored for too long. It is impossible to list these, suffice it to mention chronic under-investment in public health and fundamental research, limited achievements in food self-sufficiency, the mismanagement of public finances, the prioritisation of road and airport infrastructures at the expense of human well-being. All of this has in fact been the object of an abundant specialised research, except that it seems to have escaped attention in spheres of governance on the continent. The management of the ongoing crisis constitutes a most glaring evidence of this gap.

On the necessity to govern with compassion

Adopting the all-securitarian model of “containment” of northern countries – often without much care to specific contexts – many African countries have imposed a brutal lockdown upon their populations; here and there, violation of curfew measures has been met with police violence. If such containment measures have met the agreement of middle classes shielded from crowded living conditions with some having the possibility to work from home, they have proved punitive and disruptive for those whose survival depends on informal activities.

Let’s be clear: we are not advocating an impossible choice between economic security vs health security but we wish to insist on the necessity for African governments to take into account the chronic precarity that characterises the majority of their populations. Yet, as a continent that is familiar with pandemic outbreaks, Africa has a head start in the management of large-scale health crises. However, it should gird itself against complacency.

Here and there, civil society organisations have shown tremendous solidarity and creativity. Despite however the great dynamism of individual actors, these initiatives could in no way make up for the chronic unpreparedness and the structural deficiencies that states themselves will have to mitigate. Rather than sit idle and wait for better fortune, we must endeavour to rethink the basis of our common destiny from our own specific historical and social context and the resources we have.

Our belief is that “emergency” cannot, and should not constitute a mode of governance. We must instead be seized by the real urgency, which is to reform public policy, to make them work in favour of African populations and according to African priorities. In short, it is imperative to put forth the value of every human being regardless of status, over and beyond any logic of profit-making, domination or power capture.

Photo by Cytonn Photography, Nairobi, Kenya

Beyond the state of emergency

African leaders can and should propose to their societies a new political idea of Africa. For this is a question of survival, fundamentally, and not a matter of rhetorical flourish. Serious reflections are needed on the functioning of state institutions, on the function of a state and the place of juridical norms in the distribution and the balancing of power. This is best achieved on the basis of ideas adapted to realities across the continent. The realisation of the second wave of our political independence will depend on political creativity as well as our capacity to take charge of our common destiny. Once again, various isolated efforts are already bearing fruit. They deserve to be heeded, debated and amply encouraged.

Furthermore, Pan-Africanism also needs a new lease of life. It has to be reconciled with its original inspiration following decades of shortcomings. If progress on continental integration has been slow, the reason has much to do with an orientation informed by the orthodoxy of market liberalism. In consequence, the coronavirus pandemic reveals the deficit of a collective continental response, both in the health and other sectors. More than ever, we call upon leaders to ponder the necessity to adopt a concerted approach to governance sectors related to public health, fundamental research in all disciplines and to public policy. In the same vein, health has to be conceived as essential public good, the status of health workers needs to be enhanced, hospital infrastructure need to be upgraded to a level that allows everybody, including leaders themselves, to receive adequate treatment in Africa. Failure to implement these reforms would be cataclysmic.

This letter is a small reminder, a reiteration of the obvious: that the African continent must take its destiny back into its own hands. For it is in the most trying moments that new/innovative orientations must be explored and lasting solutions adopted.

The present letter is addressed to leaders of all walks of life; to the people of Africa and to all those that are committed to re/thinking the continent. We invite them to seize the opportunity of the coronavirus crisis to joint efforts in rethinking an African state in the service of the well-being of its people, to break with a model of development based on the vicious cycle of indebtedness, to break with the orthodox vision of growth for the sake of growth, and of profit for the sake of profit.

The challenge for Africa is no less than the restoration of its intellectual freedom and a capacity to create – without which no sovereignty is conceivable. It is to break with the outsourcing of our sovereign prerogatives, to reconnect with local configurations, to break with sterile imitation, to adapt science, technology and research to our context, to elaborate institutions on the basis of our specificities and our resources, to adopt an inclusive governance framework and endogenous development, to create value in Africa in order to reduce our systemic dependence.

More crucially, it is essential to remember that Africa has sufficient material and human resources to build a shared prosperity on an egalitarian basis and in respect of the dignity of each and everyone. The dearth of political will and the extractive practices of external actors can no longer be used as excuse for inaction. We no longer have a choice: we need a radical change in direction. Now is the time!

Signed by:

Wole Soyinka (Nobel Prize in Literature 1986)

Makhily Gassama (Essayist)

Cheikh Hamidou Kane (Writer)

Odile Tobner (Librairie des Peuples Noirs, Cameroon)

Iva Cabral (daughter of Amilcar Cabral, University of Mindelo)

Olivette Otele (Bristol University)

Boubacar Boris Diop (American University of Nigeria)

Siba N’Zatioula Grovogui (Cornell University)

Véronique Tajdo (Writer)

Francis Nyamnjoh (University of Cape Town)

Ibrahim Abdullah (Fourah Bay College)

Sean Jacobs (The New School)

Oumar Ba (Morehouse College)

Maria Paula Meneses (Coimbra University)

Amadou Elimane Kane (PanAfrican Institute of Culture and Research)

Inocência Mata (University of Lisbon)

Anthony Obeng (The African Institute for Economic Development and Planning)

Aisha Ibrahim (Fouray Bay College)

Makhtar Diouf (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Koulsy Lamko (Writer)

Mahamadou Lamine Sagna (American University of Nigeria)

Carlos Nuno Castel-Branco (Economist, Mozambique)

Touriya Fili-Tullon (University of Lyon 2)

Kako Nubupko (University of Lome)

Rosania da Silva (University Foundation for the Development of Education)

Amar Mohand-Amer (CRASC, Oran)

Mame Penda Ba (Gaston Berger University of St Louis)

Medhi Alioua (International University of Rabat)

Rama Salla Dieng (University of Edinburgh)

Yoporeka Somet (Philosopher, Egyptologist, Burkina Faso)

Gazibo Mamoudou (University of Montreal)

Fatou Kiné Camara (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Jonathan Klaaren (University of the Witwatersrand)

Rosa Cruz e Silva (Agostinho Neto University)

Ismail Rashid (Vassar College)

Abdellahi Hajjat (Free University of Brussels)

Maria das Neves Baptista de Sousa (Lusíada University of São Tomé e Príncipe)

Lazare Ki-Zerbo (Philosopher, Guyana)

Lina Benabdallah (Wake Forest University)

Iolanda Evora (University of Lisbon)

Kokou Edem Christian Agbobli (The Université du Québec à Montréal)

Opeyemi Rabiat Akande (Harvard University)

Lourenço do Rosário (Mozambique Polytechnic University)

Issa Ndiaye (University of Bamako)

Yolande Bouka (Queen’s University)

Adama Samaké (Félix Houphouët Boigny University)

Bruno Sena Martins (Coimbra University)

Charles Ukeje (University of Ile Ife)

Isaie Dougnon (Fordham University)

Cláudio Alves Furtado (Federal University of Bahia, University of Cap-Verde)

Ebrima Ceesay (University of Birmingham)

Rita Chaves (University of São Paulo)

Benaouda Lebdai (Le Mans University)

Guillaume Johnson (CNRS, Paris-Dauphine)

Ayano Mekonnen (University of Missouri)

Thierno Diop (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Mbemba Jabbi (University of Texas)

Abdoulaye Kane (University of Florida)

Muhammadu M.O. Kah (American University of Nigeria & University of the Gambia)

Alpha Amadou Barry Bano (University of Sonfonia)

Yacouba Banhoro (University of Ouaga 1 Joseph Ki-Zerbo)

Dialo Diop (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Rahmane Idrissa (African Studies Center, Leiden)

El Hadji Samba Ndiaye (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Benabbou Senouci (University of Oran)

José Luís Cabaco (Universidade Técnica de Moçambique)

Mouhamadou Ngouda Mboup (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Hassan Remanoun (University of Oran)

Salif Diop (Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar)

Narciso Matos (Mozambique Polytechnic University)

Mame Thierno Cissé (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Demba Moussa Dembélé (ARCADE, Senegal)

Many Camara (University of Angers)

Ibrahima Wane (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Thomas Tieku (King’s University College, Western University)

Jibrin Ibrahim (Center for Democracy and Development)

El Hadji Samba Ndiaye (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

José Luís Cabaço (Technical University of Mozambique)

Firoze Manji (Daraja Press)

Mansour Kedidir (CRASC, Oran)

Abdoul Aziz Diouf (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Mohamed Nachi (University of Liège)

Alain Kaly (Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro)

Last Dumi Moyo (American University of Nigeria)

Hafsi Bedhioufi (University of Manouba)

Abdoulaye Niang (Gaston Berger University of Saint-Louis)

Robtel Neajai Pailey (University of Oxford)

Slaheddine Ben Frej (Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciencees of Tunis)

Victor Topanou (Université d’Abomey-Calavi, Bénin)

Paul Ugor (Illinois State University)

Djibril Tamsir Niane (writer)

Laroussi Amri (University of Tunis)

Sébastien Périmony (Solidarité & Progrès de Jacques Cheminade)

Karine Ndjoko Ioset (University of Wuerzburg and University of Lubumbashi)

Maguèye Kassé (Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar)

Lionel Zevounou (Paris Nanterre University)

Amy Niang (University of the Witwatersrand)

Ndongo Samba Sylla (Economist, Sénégal)

/0 Comments/by

Easter joy for 38 families… but more support needed for isolated youths

,

With most places and services experiencing lock-down and limit in services, Fearless Youth Association (FYA) distributed packs of food over the Easter weekend to 43 families, youths and young people across Nottingham.

Bread, vegetables, canned food and Easter eggs made the bulk of the items distributes. Mobile phone and internet data top-up were also given to some of the most desperate families in Radford, St Anne’s, Sneinton and Lenton areas.

 

We are also supporting young people with virtual training, job applications and accessing support in the city.

Despite these supplies, we are receiving increasing requests for resources to support the young people to engagement and lead active lifestyles.

Dan, one of the young who uses FYA studios said that, “We are miss a chance to come out and work in the Basement studio or just link up with our friends. It is sometimes maddening staying with family at home, but I guess it is for our own good.”

The young people and some families are asking for resources to keep their young people busy and productive and to reduce conflicts in small confirmed spaces.

FYA, in conjunction with Nottingham Covid-19 support network are appealing for help with creative materials including artistic resources and digital media materials.

“We are also looking to expand our ambassadors and mentoring programs and would love to hear from individuals and organisations interested in joining us in this work. We believe though the times are tough, many young people are busy looking for ways to better their lives and we are ready to support them any time.” Said Angela, the Manager of Fearless Youth Association.

For more information on youth support available or the ways in which you can engage with the youths on training, employment and “Safe Space”, please contact Angela on info@fyaonline.com or call 01157846670.

/0 Comments/by

Nottingham COVID-19 Support Network Launched

, ,

Press release 14th April 2020
Nottingham COVID-19 Support Network Formed to facilitate help to African, Caribbean and Middle Eastern Communities.

Mojatu Foundation has joined five other organisations to create a support network for new and emerging communities across Nottingham to deal with the immediate, and ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Foundation is working in partnership with Fearless Youth Association (FYA), Inspired-Succeed CIC, FMB Radio, Let’s Shine and Give a Smile, and Global African Integration Network (GAIN) Diaspora.

Together, they are providing food and essential deliveries, support in accessing benefits, continuing online mental health support, and a range of training programmes. Working with local foodbanks and supermarkets, a team of volunteers have begun receiving referrals from the council, as well as online, and supplying them with essential goods.

A local Kenyan resident had two children and a husband sick at home, and the family were all self-isolating. She said, “I really want to say big thank you to Mojatu staff who brought in food for my family during this time of isolation, my family has undergone some serious testing but with friends standing with us we shall overcome. They even helped us to get a birthday cake for my son’s 7th birthday”.

BME communities make up 34.7% of the population of Nottingham, however, recent news has shown that these populations have been hit particularly hard by the virus. Together, these organisations aim to ensure that local populations receive essential supplies, that they are treated with kindness and dignity, and continue their important roles as members of the local community.

So far, the network has been delivering up to sixty food parcels a day and believe the demand will increase significantly over the coming weeks. Importantly, they intend to provide ongoing support to ensure their communities receive essential and long-term care.

For information on how to access the service for food or training support, one need to complete I Need Help form while those seeking to volunteer should complete the Here To Help form.

For more information about the network, our work or media enquiries on this press release, please visit Mojatu Foundation website on https://www.mojatufoundation.org or contact Frank on frank@mojatu.com or call 0115 8457 009.

 

/0 Comments/by

Mother and her 4 kids receive food and comfort

,

A is a single mum who contacted the Nottingham City Council for seeking help was linked to us for help especially due to language and culturally sensitive support.

With four young children at home, it was not possible for the mum to easily go to the shops to get their essentials, particularly with conflicting stories about if she could take the children with her. She was also concerned about their health and the long ques that she was seeing in the shops.

The council put her in touch with Mojatu Foundation team for support, especially given her language and cultural requirements. The team texted and called the same day to check in with her, and make sure she was doing ok and to confirm the items she required. She was especially delighted by the speed with which the Mojatu support team and the Nottingham City Council staff responded and dealt with her case.

She said it was nice to have someone to talk to and to know that people cared. The team made her laugh and made the situation seem manageable. They agreed with her that they could bring a delivery of food a few days later. They also put her in contact with a local driver who could bring milk and bread as she could not get out.

After delivering her food, the team have stayed in touch to make sure she was ok. The experience made her feel supported, and reassured to know there was a community around her in Nottingham willing to help. 

The mother was full of praise to the team and she said that, “Mojatu team and Nottingham City Council really made me feel people in Nottingham care. I had never felt that before. Me and my children are now happier and safer that we know there are people we can call in Nottingham for support”.

 

/0 Comments/by
, ,

Mojatu Foundation launches new accredited training programmes for Kutambua Project. The new training programmes, run with partners Fearless Youth Association and FarmEco Community Care Farm, will officially be launched this October.

Mojatu Foundation have been working with local BME and new and emerging communities for the last five years, and currently run training courses including media training, and driving theory, particularly focussing on supporting asylum seekers and refugees.

Kutambua, the name for the training programmes means They are also well recognises for their training with the NHS, schools and faith leaders around FGM awareness.

Valentine Nkoyo, CEO of Mojatu said, “We are so proud to be able to develop our training and support more people from our communities. We want to be able to keep providing opportunities for support, volunteering and training to ensure that BME community members understand their value and have the best possible opportunities.”

Mojatu has become a recognised centre to offer Open Awards qualifications in the following courses from now until end of 2020 in the following categories:
1. Health, Public Services & Care
2. Agriculture, Horticulture, and Animal Care
3. Arts, Media and Publishing
4. Preparation for Life & Work

Training opportunities are varied and offer opportunities for everyone, including learning how to become a radio presenter, CV writing and agro-forestry.

Mojatu Foundation, who were instrumental in getting Nottingham City to declare Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in 2016, are now looking at how best to accredit their FGM training.

Click for more information about Mojatu Foundation.  Or to find out about joining or referring someone to the training: info@mojatu.com

To find out more about their work, or book FGM training: edith@mojatu.com

Partners:
Fearless Youth Association, FYA: http://www.fyaonline.com/
Farmeco Community Care Farm: https://farmeco.co.uk/

/0 Comments/by