Facebook and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement are partnering to launch #AfricaTogether – a digital campaign and two-day festival on June 4th and 5th featuring artists from across Africa to encourage continued vigilance against COVID-19.
With more than 100,000 coronavirus cases confirmed on the continent and containment measures easing in many countries, #AfricaTogether combines musical and comedic performances with information from COVID-19 first responders and fact-checkers from across Africa.
#AfricaTogether will include a festival with performances by artists such as Aramide, Ayo, Femi Kuti, Ferre Gola, Salatiel, Serge Beynaud, Patoranking, Youssou N’dour amongst many others, as well as a digital awareness campaign with prevention messages developed with Red Cross and Red Crescent health experts and targeting simultaneously Facebook users in 48 countries across sub-Saharan Africa.
The event will be streamed on Facebook Live on the 4th June in English and hosted by the Nigerian popular actor and comedian Basketmouth and in French on the 5th June by the renowned media personality Claudy Siar.
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To watch the live shows, viewers can tune in to the Facebook Africa page and Red Cross and Red Crescent Facebook pages. To register and learn more about the artist lineup and how to tune in, please visit the Facebook event pages in English and in French.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented crisis in that it can affect us all, and ignores borders, ethnicities, and religions. African communities so far have responded quickly, but the risk remains very real,” says Mamadou Sow, a long-serving member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
“Music is a powerful uniting force and we hope that the #AfricaTogether festival will bring renewed hope and action against this dangerous disease.”
This event is one of the many ways that Facebook and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement are both contributing in the fight against COVID-19 across the continent.
Facebook continues to work with governments across Sub-Saharan Africa, including partnering with organizations like health agencies and NGOs who are actively using its platforms to share accurate information about the situation.
It has also launched COVID-19 Information Centers in more than 40 countries, which provide real-time updates from health authorities and helpful articles, videos and posts about social distancing and preventing the spread of the virus.
With a network of more than 1.5 million volunteers and staff across the continent, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is on the frontline – combating COVID-19 through information campaigns, providing soap and access to clean water, and supporting health care facilities and workers with training, equipment and supplies.
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