Artists of African descent and UNESCO join forces to build resilient responses to COVID-19

(In the poster): Artists and Creativity Beyond the Crisis UNESCO ResiliArt-Transcultura debate in the framework of the International Decade for People of African Descent with the participation of artists from the Dominican Republic and Haiti

Convinced that Africa makes us resilient, prominent creators from Haiti and the Dominican Republic responded to UNESCO’s call for an exchange on the status of artists of African descent in the context of COVID-19.

Convened by the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean, based in Havana, the UNESCO Office in Port-au-Prince and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Haiti, the bi-national debate was aligned with the International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024) and with Transcultura: Integrating Cuba, the Caribbean and the European Union through Culture and Creativity, a programme headed by UNESCO, with the financial support of the European Union, which will benefit 17 countries in the Caribbean region, including the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

ResiliArt, a global initiative launched by UNESCO in view of the current health situation, sponsors this type of online exchange, as a platform to project the voices of artists and key professionals –both established and emerging– from the cultural and creative sector, raise awareness of the impact of the pandemic in these areas and channel the recommendations of its leading figures in order to protect their sources of livelihood and revitalize the relationship with their audiences.