Expo to connect East African creatives with markets and investors
DAR ES SALAAM: Designers, artists and stakeholders in the creative industry have been encouraged to participate in the Mashariki Creative Economy Expo 2026, a platform aimed at unlocking new business opportunities, partnerships and market access for creative works. The event will take place in Dar es Salaam from August 18 to 21, 2026.
The expo is organized by the Culture and Development East Africa (CDEA).
Speaking in Dar es Salaam today, CDEA Project Manager Angela Kilusungu said the platform will bring together creatives from the film, music, visual arts, interior design, writing and publishing sectors to showcase their work, build business networks and exchange experiences that add value to their creative products.
She said that through business conversations, training sessions and expert panel discussions, participants will learn how to establish productive partnerships. For example, filmmakers will have opportunities to connect with music producers to develop collaborative projects, creating new income streams and contributing to the growth of the creative economy.
Kilusungu noted that, for the first time, the expo will feature a dedicated legal help desk to provide advice on contracts, copyright registration, protection of creative works and expanding copyright registration across African markets. She said the initiative will help creatives safeguard their intellectual property and maximize revenue from their work.
She urged designers, artists and the public to register and participate in large numbers, saying the expo has been specifically designed to strengthen the capacity of creatives, open up new markets and connect them with investors and other stakeholders in Tanzania and across East Africa.
Meanwhile, Nelson Swai from the Copyright Society of Tanzania (COSOTA) said the organization oversees the protection of creative works and has been raising awareness among artists about the importance of registering their works to safeguard their rights and earn income in accordance with the law.
Dear Colleague,
My name is Dimitar Kehayov and I am working with The Lactology Foundation to develop Toxilact – a specialized, evidence based toxicological lactological database for healthcare professionals.
Every day, physicians and pharmacists are asked the same critical question: “Can I take this medicine and continue breastfeeding?”. Reliable, structured information is often hard to find, scattered across different sources, or not available in Bulgarian at all. This leads either to unnecessary interruption of breastfeeding or to suboptimal treatment choices.
Through Toxilact, our goal is to provide free, independent, ATC based drug monographs focused on safety in lactation, so that clinicians can make informed decisions quickly and mothers can continue breastfeeding safely whenever possible.
We are a small, mission driven foundation and we depend on individual supporters like you to keep this work going. With a modest annual budget, even small contributions make a real difference – they help us cover hosting and technical maintenance, and allow us to research and publish new monographs for the drugs you see in practice every day.
If you find our work useful and would like to support the development of Toxilact and The Lactology Foundation, we kindly invite you to consider a one time or recurring donation.
You can donate directly to our foundation’s bank account:
The Lactology Foundation
EUROBANK BULGARIA
Account number: 794210
IBAN: BG63BPBI79421025668901
BIC / Swift: BPBIBGSF
If you prefer, you can also contact me to discuss how your support could be linked to specific educational modules or ATC groups that are most relevant to your field.
Thank you very much for your time, for your daily work with mothers and infants, and for considering support for this project. Together, we can make high quality breastfeeding and medication information accessible to every clinician who needs it.
With appreciation,
Dimitar Kehayov
The Lactology Foundation / Toxilact