African Roots

DW's history project "African Roots" addresses young Africans

DW's new series "African Roots" uses online comics and radio broadcasts to highlight 25 important African personalities. The project, funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation, is aimed at young audiences. The portraits cover a long period of time, ranging from Dinknesh, the "Mother of Mankind" in present-day Ethiopia, to legendary rulers of the Middle Ages such as Mali's King Sunjata Keita to key figures from the African independence movement such as Patrice Lumumba.

These animated online stories by the successful Nigerian graphic design team "Comic Republic," will primarily be shared on Facebook once a week. DW’s Facebook platforms for Africa have more than four million subscribers. There will also be broadcasts of supporting content on radio, reaching nearly 40 million African listeners per week. Most of the content is available in six languages (English, Amharic, Hausa, Kiswahili, French, Portuguese).

DW users have raised concerns saying that public discourse on African history is often based solely on the perspective of the continent's former colonial powers. One commented on Facebook that "young Africans don't have easy access to historical documentation." "African Roots" hopes to help close this gap. The project, spearheaded by DW's Africa service, employs African sources, and was developed in collaboration with African historians, cultural scientists and writers. It targets Africa's young generation, which makes up the vast majority of the population on the continent.