All roads lead to Accra in October. The eleventh edition NYU Accra’s signature public program ‘Labone Dialogues’ will kick off with VIPs and special guests gracing the purple carpet before a three-day extravaganza of books and authors from Oct 19-23, 2023.
Book lovers will be treated to readings panels featuring poets, novelists, and nonfiction writers committed to reclaiming the African narrative in the world of literature. They will be headlined by giants of African literature from Wole Soyinka, Aminatta Forna, Jennifer Makumbi and Chris Abani to newer voices sparking change like Remy Ngamije, Femi Kayode and Fui-Can Tamakloe. Ghana’s Second Lady, Mrs. Samira Bawumia will be an honored guest.
The weekend will take place one week after the Writers Project of Ghana’s Pa-Gya Literary festival and caping a week of celebrations of books and the power to change the continent through reading. It will be the eleventh edition of the Labone Dialogue speaker series and the first one spanning three days and over 30 authors.
In early 2020, the ‘Labone Dialogues by NYU Accra’ was conceived and it is curated by Prof. Chiké Frankie Edozien, the Global Site Director for the New York University campus in Labone. Since then, iconic artists like the late great Ama Ata Aidoo, the novelist, Ayesha Haruna Attah, the musician Wanlov The Kubolor, the playwright Latif Abubakar, have all graced the NYU Accra stage. The first event was a tribute to the late great pioneering musician, Kofi Ghanaba. Since that first event, heavy hitters and multiple award winners in the African literary scene have flocked to NYU Accra for a chance to connect with Ghanaian audiences including Ethiopia’s Maaza Mengiste, Nigeria’s Abubakar Adam Ibrahim, South Africa’s Zukiswa Wanner, and Leye Adenle.
“We are excited to welcome such heavy hitters to Accra. From Nobel winners, Pulitzer winners, and multiple award nominees, this weekend will be an African book lovers dream,” Edozien said.
“I arrived in Ghana from New York and recognized that we had a unique opportunity as a global university to share our knowledge and have incredible classes and conversations for our neighbors and hosts, rather than keep them within our halls of academia,” Edozien said. The scope of the presenters includes participants of all corners of the continent and the diaspora.
Edozien emphasized that NYU is a private university that has always been in the public service and that all programming is free to attend. NYU is partnering with several Accra based organizations to bring this to pass including Writers Project Ghana and SocialiteAF. The program will be held at the NYU Accra Gardens, No. 7 fourth Norla Street, Labone, Accra at with doors opening 9 a.m. and lasting till sundown. Anyone can RSVP at nyuaccra@nyu.edu The events are livestreamed on the Facebook LIVE and YouTube. @NYUAccra. More information can be found here: https://bit.ly/labonedialogues
New York University is a private university in the public service. NYU Accra was established in 2004 and is one of 14 Global Academic Centers for Study-Away. Here we provide a pathway for our students in New York to come and study and work in fulfillment of requirements for our degree programs. ‘Labone Dialogues by NYU Accra’ is a public/community event.
