Non-staff consultant

MONDIACULT is the world’s largest cultural policy conference, and its 2025 edition has identified “Culture for Peace” and “Artificial Intelligence and Culture” as its 2 focus areas.

In response to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Sudan, the UNESCO Cairo Office has been supporting Sudanese women artists and the broader community of artists in transit in Egypt through intercultural dialogues, exhibitions, and concerts.

To further contribute to the “Culture for Peace” agenda of MONDIACULT 2025, the UNESCO Cairo Office Culture Unit proposes producing a report and a policy brief to assess and address the needs of Sudanese artists in transit (displaced Sudanese artists in Egypt), especially in the field of cultural and creative industry (CCI).

The consultant will be responsible for mapping the needs of Sudanese artists in transit through stakeholder engagement and thorough desk research. The findings will be written in English and be compiled into a 4,000-word report and 1,000-word policy brief (including policy recommendations and action plans). Such outputs will contribute to inspiring further lead-up activities that align with the focus area of MONDIACULT 2025 Conference – “Culture for Peace”. The scope of work is estimated to be 10 working days.

The report and policy brief will shed light on the current socio-political and economic conditions of displaced Sudanese artists in the cultural and creative industry field, thus, to identify opportunities, needs, and challenges in empowering Sudanese displaced artists in Egypt. It shall also help identify capacity-building priorities for Sudanese artists currently residing in Egypt, ultimately easing the burden on Egypt’s host communities while fostering a culture of peace.

Specifically, the report and policy brief will provide a comprehensive assessment of the following key areas:

• Employability potential
• Arts education opportunities
• Communication and marketing needs
• The use of digital technology (such as Artificial Intelligence) needs for arts generation and arts sales for Sudanese artists in transit
• Intercultural dialogue initiatives with Egyptian artists to promote peace

Through these efforts, the UNESCO Cairo Office aims to strengthen cultural resilience and empower Sudanese artists in transit as active contributors to peacebuilding.

This report could align with the mandates of the following UNESCO policies and conventions on culture:

• MONDIACULT 2025 focus area: Culture for Peace
• MONDIACULT Declaration 2022
• 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions
• 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage
• 1980 Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist

In particular, the 1980 Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist, adopted by UNESCO, emphasizes the professional, social, and economic rights of artists. While it does not explicitly address the status of artists in transit, it underscores the importance of protecting artists' rights and freedoms, which can be relevant to artists in transit.

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