18th edition of FILDAK: Time for intellectual and cultural dialogue

The 18th edition of the Dakar International Book and Teaching Materials Fair (FILDAK) will be held from October 15 to 19. Beyond the promotion of books and reading, this meeting also intends to encourage intellectual debate and the sharing of knowledge.

Several conferences are thus included in the program. The objective is to enrich the exchanges, to cross points of view and to offer participants a framework for reflection on literary, educational and cultural issues.

FILDAK asserts itself as a clever mix of intellectual encounters and cultural expressions that highlights books and artistic creation. For this 18th edition, the slogan “Dakar, pulsating heart of the book” echoes the chosen theme: “Transmission, Library and Sovereignty”.

Beyond the celebration of books and reading, the event intends to open spaces for reflection around the role of libraries and issues of cultural sovereignty. The program includes literary symposia, but also presentations of musical albums, illustrating the diversity of expressions.

FILDAK will expand beyond the capital. Dakar, Saint-Louis, Tambacounda, Thiès and Ziguinchor will host various meetings, in a desire to bring the book closer to the public and to keep the cultural debate alive on a national scale.

A cultural calendar provided

The dynamic will extend beyond FILDAK, through a particularly dense cultural calendar, until December. On October 16, Alune Wade will present “Family Affair”, his seventh solo album, before the literary symposium of the Promotion du livre et de la lecture (PLL) association. The latter is scheduled for October 17 at the Blaise Senghor cultural center, around the theme “The art of transmitting: mentoring and reciprocal learning”.

Music and literature will continue to intersect with the presentation of “Made in Senegal”, the new album from Orchestra Baobab, on October 20, followed by a public listening session on October 22. From October 22 to 24, the Women’s Book Fair, organized by Cultur’Elles in Dakar, will honor heritage around the theme “Inherit, write, transform”, with Mali as guest country of honor and the writer Véronique Tadjo. UCAD will then host, from October 26 to 28, an international conference dedicated to Boubacar Boris Diop.

In November, the “Au tour des cordons” music festival will be organized in Saint-Louis, from November 5 to 7, then the opening of the Biennial of Contemporary African Art, Dak’Art, on November 19, under the theme “(Anti)fragilities”.

Saint-Louis will also host, from November 26 to 28, the International Cinema and Photography Fair, dedicated to cultural heritage and the construction of a common imagination between Africa and its diasporas.

In December, Tambacounda will be at the center of several events, with the inauguration of the Griot-tes Museum, from December 3 to 5, and an international conference dedicated to Cheikh Anta Diop, from December 9 to 11, at the University of Oriental Senegal.

Dakar will host, from December 17 to 20, a conference marking the 120th anniversary of the birth of Léopold Sédar Senghor. Casamance will not be left out, with the Adiola Festival, in Diégoune-Barafaye, on December 18 and 19, as well as the opening of the Noomad cultural space in Ziguinchor, on December 19. Cinema will also be in the spotlight with the ninth edition of Dakar Court, from December 8 to 12. From Dakar to Saint-Louis, via Thiès, Tambacounda and Ziguinchor, this programming demonstrates a desire to decentralize cultural activities and bring audiences closer to works and creators.

O.BA