Ashraf Johaardien
CEO > Business and Arts South Africa (BASA)

Ashraf Johaardien (They/Them): their career in the arts encompasses a range of professional and creative roles across a spectrum of disciplines. They have been associated with several South African cultural and academic institutions including the National Library of South Africa (Writers Network Coordinator), Iziko Museums (Communications Manager), the Baxter Theatre (Development Manager), the University of the Witwatersrand (General Manager of the Wits Theatres) and the University of Johannesburg (Head of Arts & Culture). Following a three-year stint as Executive Producer of the National Arts Festival, they took up the role of CEO with Business and Arts South Africa (BASA) in 2019.

At the 74th session of the UN General Assembly declared 2021 the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development (IYCESD2021). In line with that, the programme for BASA ASSEMBLY has been curated to catalyse deeper conversations around the social impact of the arts, to analyse the degree to which the creative sector and cultural institutions have (or have not) been agile, responsive or resilient in terms of COVID-19 challenges, and to contemplate the future of the creative economy. Anchoring the engagement is the launch of ArtsTrack No 9. partnered by BMi.

Charmaine Soobramoney 
Chairman > Business and Arts South Africa (BASA)

BASA Board Chairman, Charmaine Soobramoney sets the stage for BASA ASSEMBLY, emphasising BASA’s Strategic Plan, and how it underpins the broader debate informing the calendar of talks, debates and discussions at this event. She poses the question, “Is strengthening and promoting the development and growth in the cultural and creative economy of Africa as critical in the face of the current global crisis? Or rather, is our approach to sustaining the creative economy outmoded and outdated, and simply requires a revision and refresh?”

Levinia Jones
Head of Arts Southern Africa > British Council

In 2017 Levinia Jones was appointed Head of Arts Southern Africa at the British Council. Since then, she has worked on over 170 projects connecting hundreds of artists and producers across Botswana, Namibia, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, UK and multiple countries in sub Saharan Africa. Her skills set includes collaborative leadership with complex teams, working in diverse cultures, operational management and innovation, financial management, storytelling and communications, strategic thinking and delivery, partnership and network building and creative curatorship. 

Dali Tembo 
CEO + Co-founder > The Culture Foundry Co.

IT’S THE ‘C’ IN ‘CI’ FOR ME: How cultural diversity and intelligence is driving innovation within emerging markets.

Dali is recognised as one of the leading strategists canvassing current and future trends affecting Africa’s youth. He has delivered strategic guidance to numerous multi-national corporations across Africa, the UK, the US and MEA. He has also partnered with the UCT Institute of Strategic Marketing to deliver two of the largest research studies ever presented on Youth and High-Income Earners in South Africa. Dali is a contributing author to the book ‘The Future is Now’, featuring commentary from leading Futurists, such as: Dion Chang, Nikolas Badminton, Bronwyn Williams and Theo Priestley. 

Welcome to BASA ASSEMBLY, partnered by British Council Southern Africa Arts. Allow us to introduce you to this exciting event.

Themed Creativity Now: Cultural intelligence in the time of COVID-19, BASA ASSEMBLY seeks to explore what insights cultural intelligence can offer in terms of rebooting the creative economy in South Africa, on the African continent and globally.