The festival also comprises a two-day conference from 4-5 August 2011, and a fundraising banquet on 5 August. The two-day conference will have three areas of focus: business, tourism and arts and culture. The festival, an annual celebration of the African Renaissance principles on the continent, examines the theme "Connecting Africa".
The youth focus intends to educate, empower, inspire and guide. Areas under the spotlight are entrepreneurship, leadership and development, empowerment, social entrepreneurship and business.
The programme features presentations, discussions and networking sessions around technology and media; developing infrastructure for the future of South Africa; banking and finance; giving back in economically and socially sustainable ways and business areas.
The youth conference will grapple with challenges and opportunities that young people on this continent face with reference to Africa being the last truly emerging market. This conference is expected to attract delegates from a variety of youth organisations.
The conference vision has been formulated by Ignite SA - a newly-formed group of young business-people and entrepreneurs; and led by Durban Invest's Lynette Ntuli and businessman Marc Rosenberg.
Ignite is a new website networking platform which acts like a 'Facebook', but is focused on business development. They will host a number of events and discussion groups throughout the year, focusing on what young South Africans want to hear about and what is relevant at the time.
Ignite's mission is closely affiliated to that of the conference: "To establish our nation as a 'powerhouse' by opening up the communication channel of young professionals from all walks of life, and ensuring that this network is used to enrich and empower communities."
For more information and the full African Renaissance programme, contact az.oc.inazow@noitpecer or tel: +27 (0)31 266 9792.
