FBFC partner of the international folklore festival

From 3 to 11 July

From Niger to the Basque country via Easter Island and Mongolia, Georgia and Peru, a dozen groups of musicians and dancers have invaded the streets of Romans for about ten days. For its 33rd edition, from July 3^rd to July 11^th, Romans' folklore Festival offered shows, street events, a craft market and a supper with entertainment, plus encounters in the schools in the Romans district. Colourful and musical encounters and exchanges!

FBFC has been a partner of the festival for many years and this year it wished to sponsor a troupe from Niger. This partnership is naturally in the spirit of the AREVA group cultural patronage policy, which is working, amongst other things, to promote intercultural North-South exchanges.

Niger is a country in the South with which AREVA has a long shared history with, naturally, strong industrial relationships, but also via its permanent commitment to providing support and solidarity to the populations in the fields of food aid, programmes to search for water resources, and development in the health, education and cultural sectors.

The exchanges made during the festival will have enabled many people in Romans itself, but also young schoolchildren from the surrounding area, to gain a better understanding of the Peuhl culture and current food issues facing the Peuhls. A chain of solidarity was naturally set up during the ten days of the Festival, this will enable these livestock farmers to purchase animals.

Insert: The AOURINDE group from Niger 

The artists all originate from the desert around Abalak and Tchintabaraden, in the Tahoua sector (approximately 700 km North of Niamey, the capital of Niger). They are Nomad artists, mostly coming from poor families in local livestock farmer groups They have several aims:

• Promoting the discovery of Niger with all its cultural, crafts, artistic, environmental, social and tourist possibilities.
• Benefiting from the economic spin-off to fund social insertion and development micro-projects
• Providing a cultural contribution from the Peuhl community to the promotion of cultural diversity.