Libreville edition of Akini to international dance festival

The Gabonese capital Libreville is to host the seventh edition of the international contemporary dance festival dubbed "Akini to Loubou" on July 18- 20, the organizers said Wednesday. The seven artistic troops invited to the festival come from Burkina Faso, Senegal, the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, France and Spain. During the festival, the public will be entertained with dances and workshops on contemporary dances, alongside other artistic presentations whose proceeds will go towards helping the orphans. Sandrin Lekongui, the festival's president, said its main objective is to "promote contemporary dances which help to unite the people." The Gabon international dance festival is an initiative of the Central African country's young dancer, Sandrin Lekongui, in collaboration with the French Institute in Libreville. The first edition of "Akini to Loubou" contemporary dance festival was held on Feb. 7-12, 2005. It brought together 30 dancers from Africa and Europe.