Harare, Zimbabwe | 17 October 2026
On 17 October 2026, TrustAfrica marked its 20th anniversary in Harare, Zimbabwe, bringing together partners, civil society leaders, cultural actors, young people and friends of the institution to celebrate two decades of advancing African agency. Held under the theme “Sustaining African Agency, Shaping the Future We Want,” the gathering provided an opportunity to reflect on TrustAfrica’s journey and explore how African institutions, movements and citizens can strengthen their capacity to shape the continent’s future.
Zimbabwe holds a special place in TrustAfrica’s history. Through the Zimbabwe Alliance, TrustAfrica supported civic agency, social movements, knowledge generation, arts and culture, institutional strengthening and collaboration among local actors. The Harare celebration was therefore both a moment to honour this legacy of partnership and an opportunity to draw lessons for the future of African-led social and democratic transformation.
The anniversary forum featured reflections from Annah Matsika, TrustAfrica Board Member; Briggs Bomba, Director of Programs at TrustAfrica; and Tendai Murisa, Executive Director of the SIVIO Institute and former Executive Director of TrustAfrica. A roundtable on “The Africa We Want, The Africa We Must Shape” brought together McDonald Lewanika, Samm Farai Monro and Thandiwe Ndlovu to discuss the role of African institutions, civil society, movements and younger generations in sustaining African agency at a time of profound continental and global change.
Art and culture were also at the heart of the celebration. Through “The Africa We Want” community mural, children and young people expressed their aspirations for the continent, while an evening concert featuring Zimbabwean artists celebrated the role of creativity, storytelling and cultural expression in shaping African futures. Together, these moments reinforced a central message of TrustAfrica@20: Africa’s future must be imagined, narrated and shaped by Africans themselves.
As TrustAfrica looks ahead to its continental 20th Anniversary Convening in Abuja on16–17 March 2027the Harare gathering offered both a moment of reflection and a renewed call to action. Twenty years on, TrustAfrica remains committed to strengthening African agency, institutions and solidarity, ensuring that Africans are at the cen tre of defining and shaping the future they want.
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The main editorial change: I reduced the article to five paragraphs while preserving the essential narrative: the anniversary, Zimbabwe’s significance, the key dialogue, youth and culture, and the transition from Harare to Abuja.
