HAMWE FESTIVAL 2020: Will explore mental health, social justice and the arts

The University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) announces their second annual Hamwe Festival which will take place virtually from November 11 – 15, 2020, for celebrates and encourages the contributions of creative industries in the global health field.

This year, the festival will exclusively be held virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Under this year’s core theme of “Social Justice and Mental Health”, the dynamic four day event will unite artists and global health experts from over 20 countries globally who will give live virtual performances, contribute to panel discussions, and curate digital exhibitions over Zoom and live-streamed to UGHE and Hamwe Festival social media channels.

The opening ceremony for Hamwe Festival will take place on Nov. 11 at 6:30PM CAT, and will feature remarks from representatives from the Government of Rwanda, UGHE Chancellor and Partners In Health Co-founder Dr. Paul Farmer, UGHE Vice Chancellor Prof. Agnes Binagwaho, Partners In Health CEO Dr. Sheila Davis, Wellcome Trust Head of Mental Health Priority Area Prof. Miranda Wolpert, and more.

In Media brief for this event on November 7, 2020, Dr. Agnes Binagwaho the Vice Chancellor at UGHE virtually said,

“There is an urgent need to bring together perspectives from the creative and health sectors to offer innovative perspectives at tackling the global issue of mental health, at UGHE, we are building this bridge through Hamwe Festival and hope to create a dialogue about the ways we can improve health care by integrating the arts.” Said Dr.Binangwaho.

Hamwe Festival will feature a variety of sessions through the course of the event, including artists such as award-winning South African artist Tsoku Maela, Nigerian documentary photographer Etinosa, Yvonne Rwandan singer-songwriter, Bill Ruzima, Ariel Uwizeye(Wayz), Kaya Moroccan poet and novelist Soukaina Habiballah, and many more. Expert speakers include Victoria Tischler, professor of arts and health at the University of West London, Lisa Ndejeru, a Rwandan artist and psychotherapist, Mary Bitta, a Kenyan mental health researcher, and other mental health experts from around the world..

This year, Hamwe Festival is excited to announce a partnership with Welcome, the independent global charitable foundation, as part of Mindscapes, their international cultural programme about mental health. Welcome supports scientists, takes on big health challenges, campaigns for better science & helps everyone get involved in research.
Hamwe Festival embodies these values through the provision of a creative outlet where implementors and artists discuss better, more innovative ways to improve health care through the arts.

The University of Global Health Equity (UGHE) is a global health sciences university built in Rwanda focused on training health professionals to deliver quality health care in an inclusive manner including the world’s most marginalized communities. UGHE graduates are doctors, nurses, researchers, and public health and policy experts.

They are problem solvers with a core commitment to work to improve the reach of quality health care for every individual in every corner of the globe.

There are implementing their second annually event of Hamwe Festival from their beginning, which will be virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic in this year 2020.