Registration can be done online or the registration form can be printed and either faxed or posted to the ICACD Secretariat office.

ICACD 2009 will be held at the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, Homowo Conference Centre in Accra. The themes for the Conference will address the impact of Culture on achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Additionally the Secretariat is negotiating to host focus events on "Women, Culture and Development", "Culture, Governance and Traditional Leadership" and "Art and Culture as tools for conflict resolution".

We are also very excited to announce the inaugural ICACD Awards to be presented annually. The awards will highlight and acknowledge commitment and innovation in the work that has been done and is being done to ensure that culture is valued and included as an essential component to all human sustainable development process - social, economic and environmental. The ICACD Awards will call for nominations and people and organizations can self nominate or nominate a peer or peer agency for acknowledgement.

The conference is
instituted by the ICACD Secretariat as a platform for
African and non-African organizations and individuals
working in the arts and culture sector to meet annually to
share experiences, exchange ideas, make public research
findings, build and strengthen partnerships, develop
synergies, and tackle common problems.

The neglect of culture in the attempts to develop Africa is
a serious omission that has stifled the growth of the
continent. The Secretariat for the International Conference
on African Culture and Development is one of the numerous
bodies that are acting as instruments to reverse this trend.

We are hereby calling on all, state, corporate, foundations,
organizations, groups and individuals to actively get
involved in one way or the other. A pat on the back,
financial or in kind support will speed up global
developmental efforts. Our call is echoed in the 1995 UNESCO
reports "it requires other actors as well: transnational
corporations, international organizations, and the global
civil society. All three should be influenced and mobilized"

It is our pleasure to invite you to join us in Accra,
Ghana's Capital as we intensify our efforts at building a
better Africa from a culturally sensitive perspective.

The Conference seeks to draw global attention to African
Arts and culture and the significant impact it has on the
development of the African continent. The conference will
bring together scholars from a broad range of disciplines
spanning, Developments Studies, African Culture, Social
Sciences and Humanities as well as representatives of
African Traditional Institutions, non-Governmental
organizations and Government Agencies to discuss a variety
of topics aimed at achieving the Millennium Development
Goals while strengthening the outcomes of ICACD 2009.

Please network and share this invitation and contact us if
you are able to attend, sponsor a delegate or just want to
find out more detail.

Kojo Appiah-Kubi
Director, ICACD Secretariat
Kumasi, Ghana.

The 2nd International Conference on African Culture and Development will:

- Be an interdisciplinary Conference that invites and engages African leaders, academics, policy makers, Governments, NGO's, cultural activists, artists, students and all people committed to the future of Africa,

- Work to stimulate inter-sectoral dialogues and participation, from both the public and private sectors, across the spectra of Arts / Cultural, Economic, Health, Education, Tourism, Recreation and International Relations,

- Provide a platform for information exchange and debate on the progress of achieving the Millennium Development Goals with particular regard to the importance of Culture,

- Present programs that specifically address the imperatives of "Women, Culture and Development", "Culture, Governance and Traditional Leadership" and "Art and Culture as tools for conflict resolution".

- Challenge the existing paradigms for development and demonstrate the importance and benefits of including Culture in all development processes - social, economic and environmental,

- Effectively promote the voices of African women, youth, artists and cultural workers in defining pathways for sustainable human development across Africa,

- Advocate action based strategies for the development and implementation of Cultural policies at local and national levels across Africa.


The Millennium Development Goals:
MDG 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
MDG 2: Achieve universal primary education
MDG 3: Promote gender equality and empower women
MDG 4: Reduce child mortality
MDG 5: Improve maternal health
MDG 6: Combat HIV / AIDS, malaria and other diseases
MDG 7: Ensure environmental sustainability
MDG 8: Develop a global partnership for development.