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RAS Annual Report for 2019

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RAS Annual Report for 2019 ANNUAL REPORT 2019 CONTENTS About Us 02 All Party Parliamentary Group for Africa 16 A Note from our Chair 03 Public Events and Annual Lecture 18 Director’s Report 04 Africa Writes 2019 20 Strategic Review 06 Film Africa Travel Grants 22 Our Audiences & Impact 08 Contemporary African Arts Report 23 Our Members 10 Education and Outreach 24 African Affairs 12 Honorary Treasurer’s Report 26 African Arguments 13 Financial Summary 27 ASAUK 14 Team and Council 28 Business Programme 15 Our Partners 29 Thanks and Acknowledgements 30 ABOUT US The Royal African Society is a membership organisation that provides opportunities for people to connect, celebrate and engage critically with a wide range of topics and ideas about Africa today. Through our events, publications and digital channels we share insight, instigate debate and facilitate mutual understanding between the UK and Africa. We amplify African voices and interests in academia, business, politics, the arts and education, reaching a network of more than one million people globally. Find out more: royalafricansociety.org facebook.com/royafrisoc twitter.com/royafrisoc Cover Image: Yinka Shonibare. Credit © Royal Academy of Arts, London. Photographer Marcus Leith 2014 2 A NOTE FROM OUR CHAIR Dear members, partners and friends – both old and new! I hope this finds you all in good health and high spirits. It is my absolute pleasure to write this welcome note as Chair of the Royal African Society for the sixth consecutive year. 2019 was another successful year for our small charity with the big mission of promoting and amplifying African voices and interests here in the UK and beyond. This past year, we have been at the forefront of the debate on the UK visa regime and refusals for African visitors and have also shone a light on the neglected issue of mental health in Africa. We placed both of these pressing matters firmly on the public and policy agenda through the launch of the APPG for Africa’s report, entitled Visa Problems for African Visitors to the UK, and our landmark Mental Health in Africa: Innovation and Investment conference, which we delivered in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Wellcome Trust, with a personal endorsement from Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization. Other highlights of the year included Africa Writes, which featured 30 events over a 3-day festival weekend with 88 writers and contributors from over 20 countries across the continent and the diaspora; our Annual Lecture with acclaimed British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare CBE; and our Film Africa Travel Grants pilot scheme, delivered in partnership with the British Council. With a long track record in disseminating academic research to the wider public, in 2019 the Society started to establish itself as a credible ‘impact partner’ for academic research projects and this is an area of work we hope to expand on. At the end of March 2020, we bid farewell to our African Affairs Co-Editor, Professor Lindsay Whitfield, who has demonstrated great dedication to increasing the number of African authors published by the journal and maintaining the highest quality standards. We are delighted to welcome Professor Ambreena Manji as Lindsay’s successor – whom we know well as the President of our sister organisation, ASAUK – alongside Co-Editors Peace Medie and Ricardo Soares de Oliveira. As ever, I would like to conclude by extending a heart-felt thanks to all our staff and trustees; our members and partners; and particularly to our generous donors and supporters. The Society could not exist without your continued support and we are deeply grateful. Zeinab Badawi Chair 3 DIRECTOR’S REPORT 2019 has been an important year for both Africa and the Royal African Society. But as we head into 2020, the coronavirus pandemic raises many new challenges. In 2019, in Africa itself there were bright spots, like Senegal and Ghana; some dark spots, like Cameroon and Zimbabwe where problems are festering; and a lot of dappled spots in between, ranging from Sudan and Ethiopia, where major reforms are under way, to South Sudan where politics still looks extremely fragile, and Algeria where the people still seek a government that reflects their views. Amidst this diversity, two important trends can be discerned. Firstly, there are a growing number of African leaders actively tackling the challenges their countries face. In South Africa, President Ramaphosa has taken measures to reverse state capture, bear down on corruption and make the state deliver for the people. But there are no easy solutions and cleaning up is tougher work than making the mess in the first place. In Ethiopia, President Abiy is pushing political and economic reform to keep the country together, despite ethnic and political interests that threaten to pull it apart. In Ghana, an overdue reform of the financial sector is under way; and in Angola, President Lourenco is prising the state and its finances from the grip of the dos Santos family. Secondly, Africa’s citizens are demanding more of their rulers. As one Sudanese protester explained (in a piece on African Arguments): “The protests were not about the prices of bread or fuel. It was about the incompetence, the corruption and the oppression which were hallmarks of the regime.” Across the continent, in Algeria, Uganda, Togo, Guinea, Ethiopia or the Congo the message from people is the same - they want to be heard. In many places they are still not listened to. But overall, the people’s voice is growing louder. 4 One of the purposes of the Royal African Society is to give that voice a platform, in all its diversity and varied means of expression, and encourage people in this country to see and hear Africa as it really is. This has been a common thread Across the continent, the through many of our activities this year. A record crowd at message from people is heard a wealth of wonderful and moving new Africa Writes the same - they want writing; at the Annual Lecture, Yinka Shonibare CBE explained how he re-imagined the colonial encounter in his art; and a to be heard. In many workshop on the African middle class brought together business places they are still not and academic perspectives to illuminate the rapid social and listened to. But overall, cultural change in African cities. Our Chair Zeinab Badawi and I took up these themes in a packed lecture to the Royal the people’s voice is Geographical Society in October. growing louder. One of the purposes of the Royal But we are also committed to making a difference. In 2019 we focussed on two areas. With the London School of Hygiene and African Society is to give Tropical Medicine, we held a major international conference that voice a platform, and on mental health in Africa at the Wellcome Trust in November encourage people in this which helped raise the profile of this neglected issue; and with the Parliamentary APPG for Africa, we have raised the country to see and hear difficulties so many African visitors face in getting visas to come Africa as it really is. to the UK. We have also been working with the Government to help it understand more clearly what African people currently think of the UK itself. The coronavirus pandemic poses grave new challenges for the continent in 2020, and the Society will be at the forefront of discussions on how to tackle them. To enable us to do this work, we are enormously grateful to all those who have provided support during the year - to our members, the editors of our journal African Affairs, our corporate partners (listed at the end), our audiences, and our private benefactors. To all we express our warmest appreciation. Nick Westcott Director 5 STRATEGIC REVIEW We kick-started 2019 with a very productive strategy day facilitated by the Foundation for Social Improvement. Attended by the whole staff team and some members of our Council, we used the day to collectively develop a new strategic plan taking us up to 2021 – the year that will mark the Society’s 120th anniversary. Our new 3 - year strategy is action-driven and outward-facing, and it revolves around four key words, which encapsulate our main areas of work: Connect, Learn, Debate And Celebrate. Following the strategic plan, we developed a Outreach programme (p.24) continued to thrive new fundraising strategy and an operational and grow, presenting the third edition of Africa business plan for the year. All three documents Writes: Young Voices across 11 London schools, were presented and adopted by our Council at working directly with 213 school children. a meeting in February 2019. Progress on our strategic, business and fundraising plans was Debate subsequently reviewed monthly at staff meetings and quarterly at meetings of the Council and The APPG for Africa (p.16), which we administer, Executive Committee. Our main strategic was at the forefront of the debate on the UK visa achievements for the year, under each of our regime and refusals for African visitors through key areas of work, are presented below. the launch of its inquiry report Visa Problems for African Visitors to the UK; and our widely-read Connect African Arguments online magazine expanded its coverage and readership further with the addition In 2019 we worked on improving our membership of a new Deputy Editor, based in Lagos. offer and streamlining our administration and external communications with a view to Celebrate embarking on a recruitment drive from 2020 onwards. We also successfully completed our Finally, we implemented our new biennial timeline long-standing website revamp and CRM (Client for our two cultural festivals, with Film Africa Relationship Management) integration project, having its first fallow year running theFilm Africa which will enable us to better manage our Travel Grants pilot scheme (p.22), and Africa members and contacts and have a more Writes celebrating its 8th festival edition (p.20).
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