Art Moves Africa – Retracing Roots and Tracing New Routes: Mobility and Touring in North Africa

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Summary of Outcomes
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6.
LACK OF PROFESSIONALIZATION
AND INFRASTRUCTURE
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The absence of a structural framework allowing for the professionalization
of artists and arts professions is a major factor undergirding poor mobility.
Its impact can be felt on several levels:
a) Artists are unequipped with the skills, knowledge or networks
to search for international opportunities and / or to complete
funding applications.
b) Cultural operators are unequipped with the skills, knowledge
or networks to search for international opportunities and/or to
complete funding applications and / or to support artists completing
funding applications.
c) Centres and facilities with the capacity to host and support
mobility projects may be lacking.
d) There is a lack of funds supporting mobility at the public, private
and civil society levels.
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7.
LANGUAGE BARRIERS
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While Modern Standard Arabic is the official language across North African
countries, differences in regional spoken dialects and the presence
of different colonial languages pose communication barriers within the
region and outside. Respondents named the following issues:
a) Language barriers were cited as a source of intimidation, discouraging
some artists from pursuing international travel opportunities.
b) Low literacy in written French, English and / or Arabic was cited as
an impediment to completing funding application forms.
c) Language barriers can be especially relevant in disciplines such as
music and theatre, where understanding of lyrics or dialogue can
impact overall appreciation of a song or play.
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QUOTE:
« Sometimes the problem is not with
mobility funds but also with the
freedom of mobility or accessibility
to mobility. Egypt is a shrinking
political space, and artists working
with creative industries and creative
expression have this challenge
in terms of regime, for example
getting permissions to apply for
visas and permits to travel to many
countries. »
Abdelsamee Abdallah
Cultural activist and theatre
practitioner,
Cairo/Amman
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