Latest news with #Beninese
Daily News Egypt
6 hours ago
- Business
- Daily News Egypt
Egypt's Abdelatty, Benin FM discuss bilateral ties, African security
Egypt's Foreign Minister, Badr Abdelatty, held political consultations with Benin's Foreign Minister, Olushegun Adjadi Bakari, on Tuesday, to discuss ways to support bilateral relations and address challenges facing the African continent. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ambassador Tamim Khallaf stated that Minister Abdelatty welcomed the Beninese Foreign Minister's visit, which comes within the framework of the political consultation mechanism signed between the two countries in February 2000. Abdelatty expressed interest in enhancing economic cooperation and trade exchange between the two nations, and elevating cooperation in various fields including construction, infrastructure, tourism, culture, electricity and renewable energy, sanitation, pharmaceuticals, cotton and textiles, and agro-industrial and food processing. The Foreign Minister, in this context, emphasised the interest of Egyptian private sector companies in entering the Beninese market, highlighting the expertise of Egyptian companies in infrastructure, energy, and construction projects in various African countries. Minister Abdelatty also welcomed Benin's participation in training courses offered by the Egyptian Agency of Partnership for Development (EAPD), noting that Benin has benefited from 208 training courses with a total of 366 trainees. He also pointed to existing cooperation in combating terrorism and extremist ideology, whether through Al-Azhar Al-Sharif missions and the training of preachers and imams, or through training courses provided by the Agency. Minister Abdelatty stressed Egypt's keenness on achieving security and stability in the Sahel and West Africa region, affirming support for Benin in its counter-terrorism efforts, especially since the deteriorating security situation in the Sahel region impacts all countries in the area, including Sudan, Libya, and the states bordering the Gulf of Guinea. The spokesperson added that the Foreign Minister briefed his Beninese counterpart on developments in the Middle East and Egypt's mediation efforts to stop the Israeli aggression on Gaza. He also addressed the parameters of Egypt's position on the crisis in Sudan, and developments in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea region, affirming Egypt's commitment to participating in the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) as part of supporting stability in the Horn of Africa. At the end of the consultations, the two ministers signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for cooperation in diplomatic training, to train a number of Beninese diplomats at the Institute for Diplomatic Studies affiliated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They also signed an MoU for the mutual exemption of entry visas for holders of official passports, to facilitate and expedite mutual visits for further strengthening relations between the two countries.
Morocco World
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Morocco World
‘This Is Africa' Village Brings Pan-African Culture to the Heart of Casablanca
Casablanca – Casablanca's Place Rachidi has turned into a welcoming space, celebrating African culture thanks to 'This Is Africa Village,' an open-air exposition that opened on May 23, 2025, and will continue until January 18, 2026. The event is a collaboration between agency ANYA and the Association Atlas Azawan in partnership with Casablanca Events & Animation. The project is open six days a week, with the aim of attracting more than one million visitors over eight months. The village is divided into four themed zones, including the Kids' Area , where children can create colourful zellige mosaics, and listen to daily stories from across the continent. Just a few steps away, a food court featuring African street food and fresh coffee also exists, giving visitors an easy spot to rest and recharge before exploring more of the village. In the Creators' Alley, 16 stands representing Morocco, Madagascar, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Côte d'Ivoire, and Benin. The stands sell hand-beaten jewellery, woven baskets, and Beninese Padonou embroidery alongside contemporary design pieces. The fourth space, a covered stage, comes to life each afternoon at 4 p.m., with the program featuring Côte d'Ivoire's percussion ensemble Djarabikan Balafon, Casablanca's Assia Brass Band, and Beninese DJ EMos Djekomon before a rotating roster carries the music deep into winter. In an exclusive interview with Morocco World News (MWN), project manager Sofia Boukhamsa said the marathon format is deliberate: 'Our goal is to bring every corner of Africa together under one roof so families can keep coming back to discover new traditions, crafts, and sounds each week. It's a real challenge, but it's also a rehearsal for the continental energy Morocco hopes to showcase during AFCON.' Among the exhibitors is 26-year-old fashion designer Hajar Elkhattab , whose rail of cropped jackets and denim-meets- caftan skirts has drawn steady attention. 'Not many young Moroccans wear traditional garments anymore,' she told MWN, while straightening a clothing rack. 'So I've mixed modern cuts with classic motifs. Our culture is unbelievably rich, and we should feel that pride every day.' On the main stage, the wooden keys of the balafon resonate under the mallets of Souleymane Coulibaly, the manager of Groupe Djarabikan Balafon. Founded in Abidjan in 2007, the ensemble has toured Europe and North Africa but is performing in Morocco for the first time. 'It's a real pleasure to share our music here,' Coulibaly stated. 'Morocco's cultural diversity makes us feel at home.' Visitors appear to agree. Ameen, a 21-year-old student, wanders between jewellery stalls and textile stands. 'I wanted to discover other African cultures and see Moroccan traditions from a fresh angle,' he said. 'The village lets you see a bit of each thing.' Nearby, Samira, visiting with her teenage daughters, calls the experience 'a living classroom that demonstrates how art and tradition connect the continent'. Local businesses are already eyeing a windfall. Cafés and hotels within walking distance of Place Rachidi expect a surge in traffic as football fans begin arriving in December. For artisans like Elkhattab, the extended timeline is an opportunity to gather feedback and fine-tune designs. 'Eight months is long enough to build a relationship with customers,' she notes, 'and to collaborate with other African creators I would never meet otherwise.' With the first winter AFCON now confirmed for 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026, 'This Is Africa Village' is poised to serve as Casablanca's cultural drumroll. Tags: 2017 Africa Cup of NationsAfrican culture
Borneo Post
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Borneo Post
How Chinese martial arts 'speak' to Kung Fu master in Benin
Damien Agossou Degbo (front) instructs his students at his martial arts club in Akpro-Misserete, a town some 40 kilometers northeast of Benin's economic capital Cotonou, on May 18, 2025.(Photo by Seraphin Zounyekpe/Xinhua) COTONOU (May 27): In a modest yet vibrant martial arts club in Akpro-Misserete, a town some 40 kilometers northeast of Benin's economic capital Cotonou, the rhythmic thud of feet striking the ground echoes in sync with the sharp, thunderous cry of 'Hay-Hah!' Bathed in the warm equatorial sun, 53-year-old Damien Agossou Degbo is leading scores of students through precise movements of Kung Fu and Tai Chi. For Degbo, the Chinese martial arts are not merely a physical discipline but a philosophy, a way of life, and above all, a bridge between his homeland of Benin and the ancient cultural tapestry of China. At the tender age of 13, while still a student in Dangbo town in southeast Benin, Degbo discovered his passion. Spending school holidays watching Chinese martial arts films featuring legends like Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan at a cinema in Porto-Novo, the capital of Benin, he found a serendipitous encounter with the exotic culture that ignited a life-changing interest. Damien Agossou Degbo (front) instructs his students at his martial arts club in Akpro-Misserete, a town some 40 kilometers northeast of Benin's economic capital Cotonou, on May 18, 2025.(Photo by Seraphin Zounyekpe/Xinhua) 'What struck me most was how these actors defended themselves,' Degbo recalled. 'The grace, the strength, the philosophy behind each movement … it spoke to me.' Degbo began his journey by joining a private Kung Fu club in Porto-Novo, later enrolling in Chinese language and culture classes at the Chinese Cultural Center in Cotonou in 2009. In 2010, he founded his own club, dubbed Super Shaolin of Benin. In 2014, a scholarship finally took the Beninese martial arts enthusiast to China's Shaolin Temple, the ultimate institution he had long dreamed of for mastering the art. Over three months of training, he immersed himself in a rigorous daily regimen far more taxing than anything he had experienced in Benin. 'At Shaolin Temple, training was fast-paced and relentless,' said Degbo. 'Back home, we trained three to four times a week. But at Shaolin, it (Kung Fu) was a way of life.' Meanwhile, the experience offered him a deep and immersive introduction to Chinese culture. He practiced calligraphy, tea preparation, and meditation, while also receiving instruction in traditional Chinese medicine and Buddhist philosophy. Students practice martial arts at Damien Agossou Degbo's martial arts club in Akpro-Misserete, a town some 40 kilometers northeast of Benin's economic capital Cotonou, on May 18, 2025.(Photo by Seraphin Zounyekpe/Xinhua) A year later, Degbo returned to China to study traditional performance arts, including the lion and dragon dances, skills he would later impart in Benin to preserve and share Chinese cultural heritage. 'I wanted to pass on what I had learned to empower young people with self-discipline, confidence, and an understanding of another culture,' he said. Today, the Super Shaolin club boasts over 350 students across multiple regions of Benin. Degbo teaches not only Chinese Wushu and Tai Chi but also meditation, traditional massage techniques, and cultural rituals such as the Chinese tea ceremony and lion and dragon dances. Since childhood, 26-year-old Cherif Deen has been training in Kung Fu under Degbo's guidance. He credits the practice with fostering wisdom, self-discipline, and emotional resilience. 'Kung Fu changed my life,' he said. 'It gave me clarity and helped me face life's challenges with calm and focus.' Reflecting on his journey of learning Chinese martial arts through the eyes of a master, Degbo said it is a spiritual rebirth. 'Kung Fu taught me self-mastery,' he explained. 'It strengthened my mind and body and shaped how I see the world.' More importantly, Degbo now views himself as a cultural ambassador, with the discipline as a medium for enhancing mutual understanding between Benin and China. Through performances, classes, and cultural exchanges, he forges not only physical fitness but also cross-cultural respect. 'Sharing Kung Fu with young people gives them insight into the values of Chinese culture: discipline, harmony, respect,' he noted. 'It opens a window onto another worldview.' As China and Benin deepen their cultural ties, more individuals like Degbo will spring up, playing their vital role in building bonds through the art of Kung Fu. – Xinhua Benin China Kung Fu martial arts
The Star
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Game-changing food: Top chef Georgiana Viou blends cuisine across continents
Georgina Viou calls herself a 'UFO', championing free and daring cuisine straddling two continents, from Cotonou's lively street markets to the kitchens of her Michelin-starred restaurant in Nimes, southern France. In the alleys of the historic Saint-Michel market in Benin's bustling economic capital, unchanged since her childhood, Viou goes from stallholder to stallholder. At one she buys bright purple aubergines 'like in the south of France', at another four spices and smoked long peppers – which are often used in traditional medicine. 'I'm sure that apart from the preparations they make to treat themselves, the people here have never thought of putting that in food,' said Viou, 47, who runs L'Ami restaurant at Cotonou's luxury Sofitel hotel. 'I try to look at these products differently.' Viou blends West African staples with French ingredients, fusing two cuisines and cultures together in her food. — AFP L'Ami opened its doors this year, offering 'French bistronomy with a local touch' such as pesto risotto with tchayo (African basil), red mullet with local nere mustard and hibiscus pavlova. Viou, in her trademark felt fedora hat, is keen to push boundaries and blend her two worlds. 'It's also interesting for me to win over my public. Little by little, we'll move towards things that get a bit closer to our culinary heritage, while keeping French cuisine as the technical foundation,' she said. 'I once made a shrimp tartare with raw okra. I know Beninese people called it a scandal,' she added. 'People don't necessarily get me, they don't necessarily understand. But that's OK... that's my personality, this thirst for freedom but freedom in every sense of the word.' Inspiration Born in Benin in 1977, 'Gigi' as her friends call her, was inspired by her mother, who ran a small 'maquis' or popular restaurant in Cotonou. She described her as 'my foundation, my origin' in her recent book Oui, Cheffe ! Du Benin A L'etoile Michelin, Itineraire D'une Battante (Yes, Chef! From Benin To Michelin Star: Journey Of A Fighter). In the book, which came out in March, she also recounts difficult moments in her life: a rape at aged 14, secret abortions during her studies, divorce as an adult. When she arrived in France in the early 2000s, she first enrolled in applied foreign languages at the Sorbonne university in Paris. But it was in the southern city of Marseille, where she arrived in 2004, that her passion for cooking gradually became her vocation. Viou, who has three children, entered several amateur contests before taking part in the Masterchef competition on French television in 2010, then opened a cooking workshop. Recognition from the industry came at Rouge, her restaurant in Nimes, which was awarded a Michelin star in 2023. Pass it on In the kitchen when AFP visited, she replaced the usual meat dish on the menu with red mullet stuffed with black pudding topped with afiti – fermented nere seeds. Once crushed, the beans give off a strong smell similar to Maroilles, a cow's milk cheese from northern France. 'It's a sort of umami. Once you have that, of course you can add fish or meat. But if you don't, it doesn't matter because it's already going to strongly flavour your dish,' said Viou. She then took a blowtorch to add a 'smoky' touch, which she describes as being in her 'DNA' as she grew up 'with the smell of charcoal and smoked fish'. A dish of fermented mushrooms, seaweed and buckwheat with fermented mushroom juice, served at Viou's restaurant. — Georgiana Viou/Instagram As a side, she offers fonio, a popular grain in west Africa which she takes out of a plastic bag roughly closed with sticky tape, brought straight from her last trip to Cotonou. For the sauce she added onion, garlic, pastis and fish guts. 'That's Marseille!' she said of the city that has inspired her for the last two decades. 'I grew up for 20 years with flavours, aromas, ways of cooking that are etched into me. Coming here to Nimes, I felt that it was time to bring those things back and put them into what I'm doing,' she added. The Michelin star isn't the be-all and end-all for her, though. 'If this star is just for me to put there and brag about saying, 'Ah, I'm so great, I'm a star', I'm not interested,' she said. 'I now want to pass on to other people what I've learned.' That transfer of knowledge is what she intends to do in her home country. 'We don't have a... proper hospitality school, we can't buy tickets to leave. That's OK, I'll come to you. I'll show you a bit of what I know how to do,' she said. – By JOSUE MEHOUNEN with VIKEN KANTARCI/AFP
Qatar Tribune
20-05-2025
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
Qatar and Benin sign six cooperation agreements, MoUs
DOHA: The State of Qatar and the Republic of Benin have signed six joint cooperation agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), on the sidelines of the working visit of President of the Republic of Benin HE Patrice Talon to the country. The signed agreements and MoUs include an agreement to exempt both countries' diplomatic and special passport holders from visa requirements, an MoU to establish a mechanism for political and diplomatic consultations, an MoU between Qatar's Ministry of Municipality and Benin's Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries to cooperate in the fields of agriculture and food security, a cooperation agreement in the fields of education, higher education, and scientific research and an MoU on the mutual recognition of seafarers' certificates, along with an MoU to cooperate in tourism and business events. In this context, the agreement on visa exemptions and the MoU on mechanism for political and diplomatic consultations, were signed by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs HE Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Benin HE Olushegun Adjadi Bakari. Al Muraikhi also signed the MoU on agriculture and food security together with Beninese Minister of State, Minister of Economy and Finance in charge of Cooperation HE Romuald Wadagni. Minister of Education and Higher Education HE Lolwah bint Rashid bin Mohammed Al Khater and Beninese Minister of State, Minister of Economy and Finance in charge of Cooperation HE Romuald Wadagni signed the cooperation agreement on education, higher education, and scientific research. Minister of Transport HE Sheikh Mohammedآ bin Abdulla bin Mohammed Al Thani and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Benin HE Olushegun Adjadi Bakari signed an MoU on the mutual recognition of seafarers' certificates. Moreover, Chairman of Qatar Tourism Saad bin Ali bin Saad Al Kharji and Beninese Minister of State, Minister of Economy and Finance in charge of Cooperation HE Romuald Wadagni signed an MoU to cooperate in tourism and business events.
