New Narratives is a five-year programme that contributes to updating narratives of countries of Africa and the UK and strengthening connections between young people across both places.
The programme will support young African and UK content creators and storytellers. It will facilitate meaningful person-to-person engagement between young Africans and their peers in the UK and internationally. It will also seek to amplify African youth voices and influence organisations developing programming that concerns them.
In 2020, we commissioned research to investigate narratives and how they affect UK-Africa relationships. The recommendations and insights have influenced the programme's guiding principles, as below:
- Diversity: We will amplify and support narratives that show diverse realities across the countries of Africa and the UK, prioritising race/ethnicity, gender, social class, and language.
- Mutuality: We will prioritise peer-to-peer engagement among young people all through the programme's cycle.
- Co-creation: The programme will use a ‘Nothing About Us Without Us’ approach. This means that we will engage and listen to young people at all stages of the programme.
- Partnerships: This will be at the heart of the delivery model. We will explore and secure a range of partnerships delivery.
From Instagram competitions to research and co-creation labs, we look forward to putting out events and online activities in countries of Africa and the UK in the upcoming months.