Black History Studies presents

‘The Black Market & Film Festival’

Saturday 4th November 2017
12pm – 9pm
West Green Learning Centre @ Parkview Academy

The twelth Black Market & Film Festival is an event to showcase, expose and connect Black cultural and creative entrepreneurs to the community and to provide a platform to sell their products, promote their skills and engage with the local and surrounding community.

The aim of the event is to:

• Showcase and connect Black cultural and creative entrepreneurs to the community
• Increase the exposure of Black cultural and creative sector’s participation in the wider community
• To provide a platform to sell their products, promote their skills and engage with the local and surrounding community.
• To raise the awareness of the importance and relevance of increasing your personal financial literacy and the benefits of developing and adopting an enterprising lifestyle.

We will have stalls Showcasing African Arts & Crafts, Jewellery, Fashion, Skincare, Hair Care, Food, Books, DVDs, Toys & more! There will be educational and interactive presentation on Financial Literacy and film screenings for all the family.

 
TICKETS:

Any profits from the Black Market and Film Festival will go towards funding future events as we are SELF FUNDED and strive to be self-sufficient.

Our economic empowerment and liberation is OUR RESPONSIBILITY.

Early Bird Tickets cost £8.00 if purchased before 6pm on Friday 3rd November 2017

Tickets will be £10.00 on the door

Children under 16 and Elder’s over 60 are FREE

Venue:

The event will be held at West Green Learning Centre @ Parkview Academy, West Green Road, London, N15 3QR.

Directions:

By Train: Seven Sisters Underground & Mainline Rail Station (from Liverpool St) and Tottenham Hale Underground & Mainline Rail Station (from Liverpool St).

By Tube: Seven Sisters (Victoria Line) and Turnpike Lane (Piccadilly Line)

By Bus: Numbers 41, 67, 230, 341 pass nearby the entrance. We advise that you get off at a stop near Black Boy Lane on West Green Road.

By Car: Free parking available, accessed via Langham Road or free on street parking along Black Boy Lane

•Efik Leadership Foundation

The Efik Leadership Foundation (ELF) is a Social Enterprise, that means as Social Entrepreneurs we invest in community development initiatives by reinvesting our profit from various sources back into the community.

The Efik Leadership Foundation was established to facilitate the capacity building of Leadership Talent (Future Leaders) and Leadership Impact (Current Leaders) within the Efik community in order to transform the socio-economic fortunes of our youths and community.

This will be achieved through focusing on four (4) key areas; •Leadership Capacity Building •Education Support initiatives •Entrepreneurial Skills Development
•Political mobilisation

•Mission: To transform the lives of Efik youths and communities through building leadership skills, educational attainment and developing entrepreneurial expertise for the purpose of career advancement, breaking the barriers of political exclusion, community wealth generation and community development.

•Vision: To be the foremost community leadership foundation dedicated to the transformation of lives through leadership capacity building and entrepreneurial skills development.

Aims and Objectives:

1) To promote the capacity building of Leadership Talent and Leadership Impact within the Efik community

2) To utilise leadership capacity building, education support initiatives and Entrepreneurial skills development as a catalyst to initiate social change within the Efik community.

3) To transform the lives of Efik youths and communities for the purpose of career advancement, breaking the barriers of political exclusion, community wealth generation and community development.

4) To provide initial mentoring opportunities for Efik Youths by linking them with mentors based in Nigeria and abroad through a Mentoring Scheme (for Young Leaders and Young Entrepreneurs).

5) To implement Youth Leadership Programmes, seminars and workshops to explore the following themes:

•Leadership Development
•Civic rights and responsibilities
•Community Engagement
•Entrepreneurship and employment
•Education and Environmental issues.

6) To initiate and encourage the concept of Community Volunteering as part of our leadership drive.

•Our Key Projects include:
1) Youth Leadership Programmes
2) Digital Entrepreneurial Hub to support IT start-ups
3) Community Volunteer Schemes:
(Targeted at underperforming schools).
•Teaching in primary schools
•Teaching in secondary schools
•Saturday School Schemes
•Environmental volunteers

4) Entrepreneurial skills and Employability Workshops
5) Online Career Mentoring scheme.
6) CV re-writing and career coaching schemes.

Key stakeholders include:
•Calabar Forum in UK
•Calabar Diaspora
•Akpabuyo Local Government Council
•Calabar South Local Government Council
•Calabar Municipality Local Government Council
•Bakassi Local Government Council
•Odukpani Local Government Council

TRUE AFRICAN HERITAGE TAH PRESENTS.

AFRICANS UNITES IN PEACE AND UNITY

This year we will be celebrating NIGERIA as one of its largest city LAGOS is 50 years this year. It will be a celebration of Culture, Tradition and Unity.

Next year we will celebrate another Country or City.

The True African Awards is a yearly event organized by True African Heritage in United Kingdom, in recognition and celebration of Africans whose outstanding achievement and contribution in various field of life has brought pride to the African community at home and abroad. A colourful day showcasing different African Cultures like Traditional foods, Different Music, Poems, Arts, African wear and many more.

The Dinner Ceremony And Award for this year will be coming up on 7 October 2017 at Links 353 Rotherhithe New Rd, Old Kent Road London SE16 3HF

Come and celebrate Nigerians on the day.

TO SPONSOR TAH WITH ANYTHING CALL:
-Ambassador Kaizt Kenee 07943199191, -Ambassador Nabila Bangura 07534985001
-Ambassador Tokunbo Omoluwabi (Esoe Remo) 07940419171

Together We Are One!

Yours Sincerely
TAHA Committee

SUPPORT THE CAMPAIGN FOR SAFE MIGRATION IN NIGERIA!

The African Courier Verlag and African-German Information Center Hamburg, co-operating with the Nigerians in Diaspora Organization Germany and supported by Germany’s Federal Foreign Office, are currently carrying out a campaign for safe Migration in Nigeria.
The campaign, under the aegis of the Migration Enlightenment Project Nigeria and whose motto is ‘Look before you leave’, seeks to raise public awareness of the risks and dangers of irregular migration while highlighting the opportunities for legal migration.
Please use any opportunity you get to send the message out to African youths: Migrate safely and responsibly and bear in mind always that Migration is not the only path success in life.

Nigerian singer Ologunde adopted the name Lagbaja (meaning ‘anonymous’ or ‘faceless one’ in Yoruba) as he embarked on his career in the early 90s. His name was reflected in his choice of stage attire – a slitted textile and rubber mask adopted so that the artist represented the ‘common man’ in keeping with the carnival tradition of his Yoruba tribe. He formed his first small band in 1991 in Lagos after he had taught himself to play the saxophone. With a high quotient of percussion instruments including congas and talking drums, this group drew its principal inspiration from the traditional highlife music of the 60s, as well as western jazz. Following regular performances at the Sea Garden venue in Lagos (an aquarium), they soon built up enough local support to acquire bookings at the French Institute. Their debut album was released in 1992. Colours – The Colour Of Rhythm included versions of stage classics such as ‘My Favourite Things’ and ‘Lilli Bolero’, in addition to the Beatles’ ‘Yesterday’, reflecting Ologunde’s long-standing fascination with English culture and music. Despite this, his attempts to have the album pressed on compact disc in England in 1993 were aborted when the British Embassy in Lagos refused him a work permit. America proved to be more welcoming. A further cassette followed in 1994, a self-titled collection which included songs such as ‘Naija Must Sweet Again’, which many took to be an attack on Nigeria’s military rulers. This theme was continued on sessions for Lagbaja’s 1996 album. Songs such as ‘Bad Leadership’ concerned what Ologunde views as the biggest problem afflicting contemporary Africa. He was then invited by the International Red Cross Committee to join Youssou N’Dour, Papa Wemba and Lucky Dube on a Pan-African project to promote awareness of humanitarian abuses. Each member of Ologunde’s band was sent to selected troubled areas of Africa and invited to submit two songs each documenting their experiences. The other participants joined together in Senegal to compose and record two of these songs at N’Dour’s Xippi studios. The project was also the subject of a film documentary by Cameroonian director Bassek Bakhobio.

SOURCE –   ALL MUSIC.COM

THE BEAUTY IN THE DARK

Last night I felt the beauty in the dark,
Warm whispers spelt upon the mystery of a stream,
And in the stillness of the night,
I kissed the moon,
For lost children wonder upon the valleys of this earth.Last Night I swayed amongst the rivers of a life,
And through the thunders I found your smile,
But in the silence of your eyes you said goodnight,
And in the richness of your grasp I felt a cry.But Africa,
In the spirit of your song,
I knew your shadow,
And in the richness of your grace I took that train,
For the howling drums in my Mothers backyard
Awakes my spirit,
And In the corners of your eyes,
I have shared a story.
A dream … A life…But now it is dark, and I cannot see you,
And the Voices from my elders begin to drown,
Now it is late and I cannot hear you,
For time separates the marshlands of this open forest,
Where the breasts of this earth
Feed the souls of my many brothers.Tonight I drank music in a foreign lake,
I sang history on an empty shore,
And when I danced the trees began to shiver,
For the Voices in my dark,
Became too dark… too firm… too realThe night is young and beautiful,
The shadows are still wandering in their hundreds,
From a distance I hear the crows of the cock,
And so I danced,
For in your story,
Life found a new voice
And In your glory hope found a new song.

Copyright ©  Tony Tokunbo Fernandez

Tony Tokunbo Eteka Fernandez, Published Poet and Author, Events Consultant, Peace Ambassador for Universal Peace Federation and The Founder for AFRICA4U, will be organizing The Black History Month Celebrations at The UK House of Parliament for the 5th Year in a row.

We are proud to introduce our youngest ever speaker  at Our Black History Month Celebrations at The UK House of Parliament  – Mr Philip Akoda

On the 18^th of February 2017, Philip Akoda and OdisoEdim released the first Efik Language Learning App on Google Play Store and the first in a series of Language Learning apps by their company, Aflang, which aims to revive and preserve dying African Languages.

Mr Philip Akoda’s Bio

Born on the 1st of May 1996 in Calabar, Nigeria, Philip Akoda, through his mother, Dr. Winifred Akoda, is a direct descendant of His eminence  EdidemBasseyEyo Ephraim Adam (III), a former Obong of Calabar. Spending most of his formative years in Calabar and the remainder travelling several African, European and American cities, Philip, at 17, went on to study Computer Hardware Engineering at the Lagos City Computer College and is presently studying Computer Engineering at the University of Essex, where he also sits on the board of Execs for the Nigerian Society.

Nigerians In Diaspora Organization (NIDO) Housing Investment Summit taking place in Lisbon – Portugal from November 9 – 11, 2017 at the Sana Metropolitan Hotel. This investment summit will be taking place simultaneously with the NIDO European Annual General Meeting (AGM). I hope to have the privilege to introduce “VISION 105” to the House via the AGM Committee. Even though local and foreign developers have executed and commissioned numerous construction projects across the country in recent years, the supply of affordable housing remains more than 17 million less of current demand. Just imagine 17 million Nigerians in Diaspora investing 1 Euro a month for one year! From VISION 105 perspective, remittance has a huge role to play in bolstering the real estate market in Nigeria and the time is now.

I am Dean Okai, I am 42 years old and originally from South London. I grew up on two housing estates in South London until I moved out of my Mother’s house at 18. Young Men don’t necessarily make the best decisions and me moving back to New Cross to be around certain friends wasn’t the smartest.

Within a couple of years I can say that I was surrounded by petty criminals on the establishing rungs of the ladder. Yet regardless of the environments and circumstances I found myself, I always knew exactly who I was going to be and where I was going to be. I had that same spirit in school, when I would hear teachers tell me I couldn’t do this or that.

There was never a stage in my life when I would base what I was capable of, based on other peoples limitations. Everybody you come across that is threatened by your confidence will try to convince you out of your position, by selling you fear and doubt. Don’t buy it, there is something innate in your spirit that knows your path and destiny.

Having established that at my core I was always a big brother and an entrepreneur, I made a decision that no matter how many businesses I had that went down and how much I lost a by product, that I would never sit still and continue evolving and sharpening my pencil with regards to mastering business processes and acumen.

In the year 2000, I lost two phone shops in South London after three burglaries that left me with £260 in my pocket. My MO was always to get a job for six months and take advantage of all of the resources around me to re-establish myself and save the stake money to bet on myself again. I’d make myself as small as possible and save until I reached my number and then leave for another Dean Okai adventure.

You will find a common thread with many entrepreneurs in that we have had many incarnations to give us 10,000 hours of practice, to master our environment within the business landscape. There is nothing easy about being in business, because as business people we are choosing to be problem solvers. When you look at the matrix of challenges in front of you such as a shrinking economy, new technology that reduces your customer base, marketing that has become more streamlined to attract niche markets, all whilst paying the commercial land lord, who is raising the rent.

Did I mention that you have to do all of this and manage the dynamic of personalities within our companies and manage Family life at the same time. Having a job is not practice for running a business. This upsets many people with jobs, who have aspirations to get off the plantation and become architects of their own destiny. You need to just do it. Do your research, surround yourself with expertise, emerce yourself in the industry you want to enter and be aware that you have a number of transferrable skills.

Because of my experience I have always been aware that I had a number of transferrable skills, which is why I never listened to anyone else about the limitations of my capabilities. I was encouraged to get a job and work for someone else from my earliest memories, this is how we first betray our children, which is why I home school my son and enable him to be an entrepreneur.

Getting around to my current business, Suits Direct on Camden High Street, which was only an opportunistic means to an ends to provide a daily income, whilst pursuing everything else that I do. It provides me with choices that enable me to advocate on the ‘Transition of the Black Pound’ projects, raise and spend time with my son to guarantee that he will permanently be his own boss. As Black people we need to practice self preservation that serves our Families and our collective interests first.

As Men we are obligated to pay the rent and feed our Families, whilst climbing the ladder to fulfil our dreams. Being an entrepreneur is the perfect way to do that, which is why I advocate for teaching our children to be financially literate and run their own businesses. From the age of 9 I always wanted to work for myself, inspite of the fact that my Mother always encouraged me to get a proper job. My son will never know the pressures of those conflicting interests and be happy to follow the desires of his heart.

Dean Okai