ConKigali is the updated name of the bid to bring a Worldcon to Kigali, Rwanda in Africa. (See “Kampcon in 2028 Worldcon Bid Changes Target Host Country to Rwanda”.)
Micheal Kabunga, Project Coordinator/Bid chair of the ConKigali team announced today: “We have not been able to make it to Seattle for the Smofcon 41 convention in person, and remote participation is not possible either however, we feel indebted to the community and our supporters globally to receive updates about bid to host the Worldcon in Kigali and Africa in 2028 for the first time in over 80 years.”
He has shared with File 770 copies of the Communication, and Presentation, that will be passed on during tomorrow’s Q &A sessions at Smofcon. Here is also a copy of their General Q&A.
The members of the bid committee are Micheal Kabunga, Innocent Nkuruziza, Magala Simon Peter, Mutyaba Charles Reagan, Namirembe Juliet Mayinja, Charles Mugerwa, and Julius Katende.
They propose to hold the Worldcon at the Kigali Convention Center and Radisson Blu Hotel from August 23-27, 2028.
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Mike, the Communication link is to a
file://on your local disk, not an uploaded one.Thanks for letting me know. That is fixed now.
I’ve never understood how a link gets changed that way when I copy the draft over to WordPress.
I know it’s extremely unlikely that it will be chosen as a site for a Worldcon, but do read the State Department report on human rights there as the organisers make it sound, well, ideal. Might be for some…
Rwanda doesn’t seem quite as bad a Uganda’s draconian anti-gay laws and other features, but it’s reported as having lots of corruption and little freedom of expression.
All is set to have you folks down here in Kigali. It’s goona be bigger and better. It’s time to shine down in Africa. Conkigali is an exhibition and exploration of untapped potentials in the Arts and Entertainment industry.
Beautiful place. I loved the Sierra Waves on the volcano. Reminded me of the California high desert. Probably a great place to go but there are not enough hotel rooms at the convention center.
As for corruption. Judge not lest ye be judged by the measure there of. The USA is probably headed that direction.
[deleted content]
Edit: I posted this in response to a comment that was deleted. I won’t speculate as to why, but it was both inaccurate and extremely creepy and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to read comments from the poster without a slightly unpleasant taste in my mouth.
I’m relatively old, at least in the current scheme of things, so I can feel/understand how said commenter had a glitch, though yes, it came out very badly. Also: State Department: “We were going to express grave concern over Rwandan ‘impunity’ but on reflection it’s local stuff whereas our President’s son was pardoned for unspecified actions 11 years ago that arguably started WWIII so we had trouble maintaining a straight face “
@Cat Eldridge: Rwanda was chosen by the UK’s former Tory administration as suitable for a temporary holding space / processing site for illegal immigrants arriving in England from France. Various human rights lawyers objected, and it was still pre-launch when the new Labour administration arrived and cancelled the scheme.
Steve Green says Rwanda was chosen by the UK’s former Tory administration as suitable for a temporary holding space / processing site for illegal immigrants arriving in England from France. Various human rights lawyers objected, and it was still pre-launch when the new Labour administration arrived and cancelled the scheme.
Good for the new Labour government.
There’s a line in Sterling’s Islands in The Net about Africa always being red which is to say always in crisis mode. It’s applicable in reality.
FYI this year Africa saw peaceful changes of government through elections in Botswana, Mauritius and Somaliland, with other incumbents getting re-elected but with thinner margins elsewhere; average annual economic growth across sub-Saharan Africa is 3.8%, compared to 2.7% in the US; the third, fourth, fifth and sixth fastest growing economies in the world are Niger, Senegal, Libya and, yes, Rwanda; health care is affordable where it is available; and although political violence is unfortunately a serious problem in the Sahel and the Horn, there don’t seem to be many school shootings.
But please, Cat, do keep us informed of the results of your thorough research on the situation in Africa, based on a novel published in 1988.
FWIW I was part of a study a couple of years ago looking at cross-national responses to COVID; one of the coauthors was Rwandan and covering the response over there; and I was seriously impressed by their health care system’s facilities and resilience. I’m rather hoping I’ll get a chance to see Rwanda in person in 2028.
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TBH, I’m really impressed with this bid and this team.
They listened to community members who raised concerns about the original host country, and are trying to offer a venue that’s more in-line with what’s needed.
Find it fascinating that Rwanda, a country 30 years removed from a genocide and rebuilt under an extremely dubious autocracy, got public healthcare before the US did
Mmm actually what about, instead, an inaugural AfricaCon -eg like the other main “regional” con long going on (and this time it has been so for Europe since 1972: Eurocon : the now annual European SF Convention)?? ..And in a sense, Eurocon is Worldcon’s little brother! And that begs the question (and it was on the Glasgow 2024 Business Agenda) what about an AsiaCon…??
I agree, credit to the bid committee for listening. This is a much better site. I read the State Dept. report. There isn’t much political freedom in Rwanda. I will leave it to others to say for themselves whether they would feel comfortable visiting Rwanda, but it’s definitely better than Uganda. Physically, the site has hotels and restaurants close to the convention center. If I remember correctly, the Kampala site had only one hotel at the convention center and it was very expensive. This looks like it would work better for fans on a budget. Another positive: Rwandan coffee is excellent.