Hakuna Matata Africa was an exhibition of contemporary African art that took place in 2005 at the BBC Centre in White City, London. It was the first exhibition to introduce Kambani’s children’s creative writing programme. Since then, empowering children and young people has become central to Kambani’s mission.
The exhibition has significant meaning. The private view was originally scheduled for the evening of 7 July 2005. That was the day of the London suicide bombings. As a result, all events were cancelled as access was suspended and all travel ground to a halt. This was a sad time but the event was reconvened for 21 July. On that day, another bombing attack was attempted. It resulted in a further lockdown in transport and closure of the BBC.
A final event was convened for 5 August. This time there was no disruption and the event was a success. It was dedicated to the innocent lives lost and the central message was to stand united against terror. This was reflected in a number of children’s written work.
