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The Africa Center provides a gateway for engagement with contemporary Africa.
The Africa Center is transforming the world’s understanding of Africa, its Diaspora, and the role of people of African descent in the world. Serving as the hub for the exchange of ideas related to the continent, and in the spirit of collaboration with individuals and institutions who share our values, The Africa Center inspires enthusiasm, advances thought, and empowers action around Africa’s global impact on our collective futures. This mission is guided by a leadership team that includes Board Co-Chairs Chelsea Clinton and Jendayi Frazer, Board President Halima Aliko Dangote, and CEO Uzodinma Iweala.
The Africa Center’s physical presence on Fifth Avenue at the intersection of Harlem and the Museum Mile is a location that embodies the dynamism and diversity of Africa and its Diaspora in the heart of New York City. Caples Jefferson Architects (CJA) was engaged in 2016 to design the facility, responding to The Africa Center’s ethos as an experimental, inclusive institution fostering business, policy, and cultural exchange locally and globally. To serve the Center’s programming, the New York-based firm designed a receptive, flexible, and expansive structure—its Museum Mile location in East Harlem contextualized architecturally and programmatically.
Since launching its public programming in January 2019, The Africa Center has already attracted and engaged thousands of visitors in a series of inaugural performances, installations, talks, readings, book signings, and film screenings. Teranga, a fast-casual restaurant located on the Center’s first floor that highlights food from the continent and hosts tastings and cooking demonstrations aligned with the Center’s programming and mission, has received critical acclaim.