The 13-man international Jury for the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) arrived in Lagos, on Tuesday, for a week-long adjudication process for the awards’ fourth edition.
Those who arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport include Charles Tabu representing Central Africa; Cameroonian media executive Robert Ekukole; Delani Makhalima from Zimbabwe, and Christian Syren from South Africa, represented Southern Africa.
David Tayorault, the Ivorian composer, and Olisa Adibua, a Nigerian media and music industry personality, are West African representatives.
Representing Eastern Africa are Tanzania’s Joett, and Tabu Osusa, CEO of Ketebul.
Hadja Kobélé Keita, a US-based music executive, and Rita Ray, a UK-based BBC Radio 3 Presenter, are representing Africans in the diaspora.
Moroccan Omar Es Saidi is representing Northern Africa and Angela Martins sits in for the African Union Commission (AUC).
Commenting on the adjudication process, one of the jurors, Ekukole, said, “This is a crucial stage in the AFRIMA Awards process. The objective of adjudication is to access well-deserving artistes and music professionals for nominations in the regional and continental categories and eventually to emerge as winners through public voting.”
The adjudication process includes the responsibility of screening, categorising, assessing and selecting nominees from the total of 4,816 works submitted for the 2017 awards.
AFRIMA’s main aim is to showcase the best and reward great musical and cultural efforts with a 23.9-carat gold plated trophy.
The main award events are scheduled to hold from November 9 to November 12, and broadcast to over 80 countries across the world.
