Omanghana
Ghana will host the first African Festival of Arts, Culture and Creatives in Accra from December 9 to 12, 2026, as part of efforts to strengthen the continent’s cultural and creative economy.
The Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, announced the event on Monday, August 10, 2026, during the Government Accountability Series in Accra.
Known as AFESTACC, the festival is being organized under a strategic agreement between Ghana’s tourism ministry and the African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa’s Development.
The partnership operates through AUDA-NEPAD’s Africa Creatives, Sports and Recreation Program, which promotes culture, sports and creative enterprise as important contributors to the continent’s development.
AFESTACC is designed to bring together artists, cultural practitioners, entrepreneurs, policymakers, investors and other industry stakeholders from across Africa and the diaspora.
The festival’s central objective is to position Africa’s cultural and creative sectors as major drivers of employment, entrepreneurship, tourism and sustainable economic growth. Organizers also hope to create new opportunities for African creatives to access international markets and establish commercial partnerships.
One of the main attractions will be a dedicated gastro festival showcasing Africa’s diverse culinary traditions. The program is expected to highlight indigenous foods, local ingredients and the businesses supporting regional food economies.
The event will also feature the AFESTACC Village, a large cultural marketplace that will accommodate creative exhibitions, fashion showcases and trade networking activities. The village is expected to provide artists and businesses with space to display their products and connect with potential buyers, investors and distributors.
Nightly performances will showcase African music, theatre and contemporary art. The curated events will give performers from different parts of the continent an opportunity to present their work to both local and international audiences.
AFESTACC will extend beyond performances and exhibitions by hosting discussions about the social and economic value of Africa’s creative industries. The program will include the AUDA-NEPAD 25-Year Colloquium, alongside wellness events and sports activations.
Gomashie said the festival forms part of a broader effort to revitalize Ghana’s creative sector and position the country as an important destination for cultural tourism and creative investment.
During the same address, the minister provided an update on the government’s GH¢20 million Creative Arts Fund. She disclosed that a Legislative Instrument intended to give the fund formal legal backing was being finalized at the Attorney-General’s Department.
The fund is expected to support creative professionals and enterprises while providing a structured mechanism for financing projects across the arts, culture and entertainment sectors.
The ministry also clarified that the government’s immediate infrastructure strategy would prioritize the completion of existing unfinished cultural projects rather than beginning new large-scale developments.
That approach is intended to bring abandoned or delayed facilities into use and ensure that previous public investments deliver practical benefits to creative professionals and local communities.
Hosting the inaugural AFESTACC could strengthen Ghana’s reputation as a center of African culture, heritage and creative enterprise. It could also attract visitors, generate business for the hospitality industry and create new opportunities for artists and entrepreneurs.
With participants expected from across Africa and the diaspora, the December festival is set to provide a major platform for celebrating African identity while promoting culture as a source of jobs, trade and long-term economic development.
Source: Omanghana
