Panel 4 Le Forum Culturel x Africalia: Culture and new technologies

Every second Saturday of the month, from March to September 2025, from 10 to 11.15am GMT, Africalia and Le Forum Culturel invite three actors from the cultural sector to explore current themes related to the development of the CCIs. The fourth session centres around “Culture in the digital era: how can new technologies boost creative expression? » and will be held in English.

The panel will be broadcast online on Africalia's Facebook page and available to watch on Facebook and YouTube in replay. The audience will be able to ask the experts questions in real time.

More info on Africalia's collaboration with Le Forum Culturel: here.

The topic

This panel will explore how new technologies are profoundly transforming the cultural and creative ecosystem in Africa. We will examine how digital arts can contribute to strengthening CCIs, transforming narratives and lifting up African heritage. However, while technology opens up a myriad of opportunities for innovation and economic growth, it also poses significant challenges. The speakers will discuss how to turn these challenges into opportunities.

The panelists

Lodi Matsetela (South Africa) is at the forefront of Africa's digital creative industries. As a program manager at Digital Content Hub, Tshimologong Precinct (Wits Incubator), it supports initiatives such as Digital Lab Africa and participates as a partner in the Consortium Afrique Créative. His commitment to the development of the digital ecosystem is also reflected in his role within the Fak'ugesi African Digital Innovation Festival. An award-winning producer and filmmaker, she is also deeply involved in the debate about content creation in the age of AI, exploring how new technologies can expand narrative possibilities.

Selasie Awity (Ghana) is a self-taught, multidisciplinary creative leader specialised in virtual and augmented reality, digital storytelling, and immersive product design. As the founder and creative director of DOBIISON, Ghana’s leading XR company, he leads cross-functional teams in creating innovative digital experiences for brands across Africa, blending technology, creativity, and collaboration to build impactful products across industries. He’s also committed to mentoring world-class African talent, volunteering with NGOs, and exploring the continent to share its stories with the world.

Brian Afande (Kenya) is a creative technologist and agent of change dedicated to accelerating the adoption of XR technologies across Africa. Co-founder and CEO of BlackRhino VR, he aims to design, democratise, demystify, and deploy XR and equip the next generation with essential skills to drive economic transformation. By fostering new ideas, business models, and job creation, he is positioning Africa’s youth at the forefront of global technological advancement, ensuring they actively shape their own futures. He is Board Member of the Global Future Council on the Future of the Metaverse at the World Economic Forum.

The moderator

Mary Corrigall (South Africa) has founded CORRIGALL & CO, a Cape Town-based art research consultancy, in 2015. A prominent commentator, researcher and academic whose work has probed different arts sectors, she has been mapping and analysing creative economies in South Africa and other parts of Africa for commercial, non-profit and public entities. Over the years she has widened her purview to the digital arts sectors, such as animation and gaming.

You can also rewatch the previous panels on gender representations, on art and resilience and cultural mobility.