South African Embassy in Senegal, in partnership with the United Nations Information Center in Dakar (UNIC), the UNESCO Regional Office in Dakar, “Le Village des arts de Dakar”, the National Center for Blood Transfusion (CNTS), Cheikh Anta Diop University (UCAD), the National Council for the fight against AIDS and the movement of “young madibadistes” (a student association who has as a role model Nelson Mandela), organized activities in order to pay tribute to Nelson Mandela on the 15th, 16th and 18th of July 2016.
On Friday, 15 July, “young madibadistes” organized at UCAD a blood donation in partnership with the National Council against AIDS (CNLS) and the National Center for Blood Transfusion. This meeting was followed by an exhibition on Nelson Mandela. Senegalese artists also paid tribute to this great African in exceptional works of arts. His Excellency the Ambassador of South Africa in Senegal, concluded the event by signing the UCAD’s guestbook.
On the second day of activities, Unic organized a documentary screening on Nelson Mandela and his work at the Cheikh Anta Diop University, followed by a high-level panel on the theme "Promoting peace and prevent the radicalism and extremism". The Ambassador of South Africa in Senegal asked the students to take Mandela’s experience as an example .
On the third day, the official ceremony took place at Gorée, with the tree of Peace being planted at the "Place of Human Rights". The students joined in the campaign of 67 minutes for cleaning Gorée. For the mayor of Gorée, the Island has many similarities with Robert Island in South Africa where Mandela was imprisoned. He announced the twinning of two communities in the near future. In addition, He said, Gorée Island was in the past the place chosen to host the negotiations between the African National Congress (ANC) leaders and the South African authorities to eliminate apartheid.
