WHAT: Launch of Africa Day 2021 Digital Campaign #IAmAfrican

WHO: The African Union Commission, TikTok, Trace TV

WHERE: AU Youth Program digital media platforms

BACKGROUND

The African Union’s Youth Division within the Women, Gender and Youth Directorate has partnered with TikTok and Trace TV to celebrate Africa Day through a half month-long digital campaign titled #IAmAfrican. The partnership accelerates the vision of the 1 Million by 2021 initiative of H.E Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission. The initative seeks to provide opportunities to African youth in Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Engagement.

The overall objective of the #IAmAfrican campaign is to amplify the AUC 2021 theme of the year “Arts, Culture and Heritage; Building Levers For The Africa We Want”. The campaign calls on users to creatively express their views on what makes them proudly African across various categories, fashion, makeup, dance, food and music.

This month TikTok Africa will programme a line-up of in-app initiatives to highlight African content with genre-specific playlists, including; Gengetone, Afrobeats, Amapiano and an exclusive in-app playlist. 

Critical to the success of the campaign is its amplification through AU Member States to generate interest and capture young people’s perceptions and identities pertaining to the theme, and furthermore, showcase the shared commentary.

The campaign objectives are as follows; 

• Celebrate and highlight the different and creative identities of young people across Africa and the diaspora through the lens of arts, culture and heritage.
• Mobilize young people across Africa and the diaspora to creatively express their interpretation of the #IAmAfrican theme and encourage their peers to do the same for a catalytic effect.
• Discuss pathways to reimagine African identity alongside thought-leaders and celebrities in the arts, culture and heritage sector. 
• Creatively capture and amplify the voices of young people through digital and new media such as Tik Tok, and create archival content.

How to participate:

· Access the playlist on TikTok here; https://vm.tiktok.com/ZSJyJxxTR/

• Show your creativity and use the music to share what makes you African
• Use the hashtag #IAmAfrican

All videos uploaded using one of the songs featured in the playlist with the official #IamAfrican hashtag stands a chance of being selected and shown on the music channel, TRACE TV, during the month of May.

There will also be an exciting virtual conversation taking place on the 25^th of May to complement the ongoing activities to commemorate Africa Day.

Journalists are invited to monitor and cover the virtual engagement.

Note to Editors

About the AU 1 Million by 2021 Initiative: The AUC’s initative provides direct opportunities to African youth in the areas of Education, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Engagement through partnerships with critical stakeholders in the private and public sector.

About TikTok: TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. Our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok has global offices including Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo.www.tiktok.com.

About Trace TV: TRACE is the first global ecosystem that leverages afro-urban entertainment to connect and empower the new generation and the creators. TRACE Engages with 300 Million Fans, leveraging the Power and the Creativity of Hip Hop, Urban, African, Brazilian and Caribbean culture. www.trace.tv

For further information, please contact:

Ms. Nontobeko Tshabalala, Communications Lead – AUC Youth Division via E-mail: NontobekoT@africa-union.org

Ms. Rola Abu Hassan, Head of Communications - TikTok Africa via E-mail: rola.abuhassan@bytedance.com

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