Africa No Filter’s partnership with Western Union will ensure effective and rapid money transfers to Africa’s young creative talent.
30th March 2021, Nairobi, Kenya: Africa No Filter (ANF) today announced a partnership with Western Union to help with the rapid and secure disbursement of grants to emerging artists across the continent.
The Kekere Storyteller’s Fund was set up by Africa No Filter to provide much-needed grant funding to content creators, wordsmiths, performance artists, visual artists and journalists. The fund pays for storytellers to create and publish unique and compelling content that shifts prevailing stereotypical narratives about Africa.
The Kekere Storytellers Fund addresses the need for more access to funding for emerging artists in Africa. The grants are for individuals under age 35 and range between $500 and $2000. Because the application process is deliberately accessible, it opens up new opportunities for artists and storytellers. With Western Union as a payment partner, accessing the funds once approved is now even easier.
“Independent storytellers on the continent often do not have access to traditional grant-making organisations. They lack visibility into grant awards, the grant-application process, and the monitoring and reporting tools needed by the more traditional funders,” says Moky Makura Executive, Director of Africa No Filter. “The Kekere grant amounts may be small, but a few hundred dollars can go a long way towards helping storytellers bring their content to life. As a grant-making organisation, having a safe, reliable financial partner to help us dispense the funds quickly is critical, and Western Union is a trusted payment brand.”
Western Union has a vast network of outlets that can deliver grants to individuals in small communities and those in large cities equally effectively. Another added advantage is the ability to transfer cash grants. With 33% of the continent’s youth less likely to have a bank account, Western Union’s vast network of banks and cash agents across the continent who can dispense cash is an added bonus.
“The Kekere Storytellers Fund is helping us build a pipeline of the continent’s next generation of creative talent, and we are pleased we can contribute to their work,” said Jessica Hagan, ANF’s Program Lead. “Art is one of Africa’s biggest exports, both within the continent and globally. It provides an opportunity for us to show the world our creativity, innovation and share our own stories that challenge the perceptions about our countries and communities.”
Africa No Filter will announce the first set of recipients for the grants in April 2021.
A new callout will go out in the next quarter and interested artists can register on the ANF website.
Notes to editors:
About Africa No Filter
Africa No Filter is a donor collaborative that’s working to shift stereotypical and harmful narratives within and about Africa. Through research, grant-making and advocacy, our objective is to build the field of narrative change-makers by supporting storytellers, investing in media platforms and driving disruption campaigns. ANF’s goal over time is to leave an empowered narrative change ecosystem and an informed community of storytellers who work more deliberately to change harmful narratives within and about Africa. The donor collaborative is funded by Ford Foundation, Bloomberg, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Luminate, Open Society Foundations, Comic Relief, the Hilton Foundation and the British Council. www.africanofilter.org
About Western Union
Western Union pioneered the idea of moving money around the world and has been connecting people globally for over 169 years. The company has an extensive global network spanning 200 countries and 130 currencies. For more information, contact lerato@africanofilter.org