Author: UGCCTEAM

News flash — We can now confirm that the Aga Khan Museum will partner with the Uganda Canada Convention and on Monday July 2nd will host a special reception for Uganda Parliamentarians, the High Commission and other dignitaries from Uganda who will be given a VIP tour at the Aga Khan Museum on Monday July 2 in Toronto. A representative of the Aga Khan Foundation will also be a featured guest speaker during the Uganda Canadian Business Expo on Saturday June 30th.

The Aga Museum will be open from 10 AM – 6 PM that day and all Uganda Canadian Convention attendees will be offered a special 50% discount to access the Museum on Monday July 2nd. If this is of interest to you please register today and remember to carry your attendee pass to receive this special discount — sitting and access to the Museum grounds will be available on a first come first serve basis!

AGA KHAN MUSEUM — In a personal letter to architect Fumihiko Maki, His Highness the Aga Khan suggested the Museum be designed around the concept of light. Light, His Highness noted, has been an enduring inspiration for the world’s religions and civilizations since earliest times.

Maki responded with a design that invites direct and diffuse light into the building in ingenious ways. The building is positioned 45 degrees to solar north to ensure that all exterior surfaces receive natural light over the course of the day. Angular walls of white Brazilian granite, a material chosen for its resilience and luminosity, enhance the play of light across building surfaces.

AGA KHAN PARK — In the Aga Khan Park, Vladimir Djurovic aimed to re-create the sensory experience — sounds, aromas, textures, and colours — that he experienced while visiting traditional Islamic gardens in the Alhambra, Spain and Humayun’sTomb in Delhi, India, among other historic sites. The result, he hopes, is both “ephemeral and eternal,” a space that may change with the passing light or season, yet becomes a permanent legacy for the city of Toronto. Based on a traditional chahar bagh (four-part garden), the formal garden within the Park is given a natural geometry through ordered plantings of serviceberry trees. The reflecting pools mirror the sky and capture architectural details of the Aga Khan Museum and Ismaili Centre, placing both buildings in conversation.

BIOGRAPHIES — HIS HIGHNESS THE AGA KHAN His Highness the Aga Khan, founder and chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), is the 49th hereditary Imam (Spiritual Leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. He was born in Geneva, Switzerland, but spent some of his early childhood in Nairobi, Kenya. The Aga Khan holds a degree in Islamic history from Harvard University. He ascended to the hereditary position of the Imam of the Ismaili community in 1957 at the age of 20. The Ismailis are an ethnically and linguistically diverse community numbering between 12 and 15 million people.

Over the past six decades, the Aga Khan has gradually established the AKDN, one of the largest development organizations in the world. The AKDN serves beneficiaries in 30 countries of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, irrespective of their faith. The Network is non-denominational, but its ethical framework is rooted in the tenets of Islam. The Network strives to bring lasting improvement to the lives of its beneficiaries, emphasizing excellence and long-term commitment.

During the course of history, Ismaili Muslims, under the guidance of their hereditary spiritual leaders, have made major contributions to the growth of Islamic civilizations. The University of Al-Azhar and the Academy of Science, Dar al-Ilm, in Cairo and indeed the city of Cairo itself exemplify their contributions to the cultural, religious, and intellectual life of Muslims. Among the renowned philosophers, jurists, physicians, mathematicians, astronomers, and scientists of the past who flourished under the patronage of these spiritual leaders are Qadi al-Numan, al-Kirmani, Ibn al-Haytham (al-Hazen), Nasir e-Khusraw, and Nasir al-Din Tusi. The Aga Khan is a recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees recognizing his contributions to the well-being of impoverished societies.

PRINCE AMYN AGA KHAN — Chairman of the Museum’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee, Prince Amyn Aga Khan was born on September 12, 1937, in London. He is the younger brother of His Highness the Aga Khan and grandson of the late Sir Sultan Mohamed Shah Aga Khan.

Prince Amyn spent his early childhood in East Africa and Cairo during the Second World War and then attended Le Rosey School in Switzerland. He received his BA with Honours, magna cum laude, in 1960 from Harvard University. Thereafter, he continued his studies at Harvard’s Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, from which he received his MA (1963) in comparative literature. After completing his studies, Prince Amyn worked in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations until he joined His Highness the Aga Khan in 1968.

Prince Amyn is a Director on several Boards of the institutions of the Aga Khan Development Network, including those of the Aga Khan Foundation, the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (he is Chairman of the Executive Committee), the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance, and the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC). The Trust coordinates the Aga Khan Development Network’s cultural activities, which largely focus on architecture and the built environment in societies in which Muslims have a significant presence.

Prince Amyn, who is a collector himself, has active relations with various museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City as well as the Musée du Louvre in Paris. He was on the Acquisitions Committee of the Louvre and is still on the Council of the Friends of the Louvre. He has been involved in the work of institutions designed to save heritage and, in particular, has been active in turning heritage buildings into inns and hotels after restoring them. He is a Trustee of the World Monuments Fund and was, for many years, a Director of the Silk Road Project launched by Yo-Yo Ma. Prince Amyn has been actively involved with the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, Canada, from its inception to the formation of its Collection.

DESIGN
Architect: Maki and Associates (Japan)
Architect of record: Moriyama and Teshima Architects (Canada)
Museography: Studio Adrien Gardère (France)

MATERIALS
Exterior: Brazilian granite, glass, aluminum
Interiors: Concrete, steel, aluminum panelling, Italian
limestone, patterned glass, stone mosaic floors, polished
black granite, Indonesian teak, polished plaster, cast zinc.

KEY FACTS AND FIGURES
Gross Floor Area: 10,500 square metres
Floor Area (Exhibition Galleries): 1,800 square metres
Floor Area (Collections Storage): 620 square metres
Seats in auditorium: 350
Height of auditorium roof: 19.8 metres
Collected by His Highness the Aga Khan and his family over
several generations, the Museum’s Permanent Collection
showcases the breadth of Muslim civilizations from the
8th century to the present day. Among its more than 1,000
artifacts are rare manuscripts, paintings, ceramics, glass,
scientific instruments, and intricate metalwork.

DESIGN
Landscape architect: Vladimir Djurovic Landscape
Architecture (Lebanon)
KEY FACTS AND FIGURES
The Aga Khan Park is a private park open to the public
year-round.
Hours of operation:
April 1 to October 31: open daily from dawn to 10 pm
November 1 to March 31: open daily from dawn to dusk
The site: 6.8 hectares
Paved Walkways: 1,600 metres
Green performance space: 2,300 square metres
Architect of record: Moriyama and Teshima Architects (Canada)
Walkway from Eglinton Ave to Wynford Drive: 560 metres
Plantings in the formal gardens include:
Plants: Russian Sage, Periwinkle, Thyme, Cedar hedges
Trees: Serviceberry, Redwood, Honey Locust
Plantings in the Park include:
Plants: Rose Glow Barberry, Chinese Wisteria, Forsythia bushes
Trees: River Birch, Freeman Maple, Star Magnolia, Trembling
Aspen, Silver Maple, Poplar, Spruce, Honey Locust, Amur
Maple, Zelkova Serrata, Weeping Cherry

Visit the Aga Khan Museum today — https://www.agakhanmuseum.org/

Paul Anderson Okoth a.k.a Wonder boy is a 27 year old Ugandan musician based in Canada, currently managed by New Level entertainment. He was raised in Jinja and Entebbe towns of Uganda. ‘Wonder Boy’ went to school at Saint Peter’s high school Nsambya for ‘O’ level and Rena College Mayuge for Advanced level education. After his completing his ‘A’ leves, Okoth moved to Toronto, Canada.

Wonder Boy started singing way back in High school where he was involved in school choir. After leaving Uganda Wonder Boy continued with his passion and pursued his career in music away from home. He has recorded a number of songs some of which have been featured on clubs and hiphop radio stations. Wonder Boy also won the Lakeshore idol competition, Toronto Canada, in 2010.

He has performed at different occasions and various concerts in and out Toronto; he was a featured artist at the African Diaspora conference held in 2010.

Other artists he has performed along and curtain raised for include Jose Chameleone. Wonder Boy’s latest projects include new songs like Scooby Dooby Doo, Ba Babiloni, tokitya, bulikimu. This year he recorded a new music video in Kampala, Uganda that is quickly gaining traction among local music lovers. Wonder Boy will be among the featured local headliners from Toronto at the Uganda Canadian Convention.

For Immediate Release — From Saturday June 30th to Sunday July 1st all roads will lead to the Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel on 123 Queen Street West, Toronto, ON M5H 2M9 as the Uganda Canadian Diaspora Community unveils their Business Expo and Convention over the Canada Day long weekend.

Co-chaired by Mr. John Naliima a software engineer based in Toronto the event will attract Ugandan Canadians interested in developing their businesses both in the diaspora and at home in Uganda. Areas and topics will range from Mobile Money Transfers, Diaspora Tourism, Affordable College Education, Diaspora Banking, Mortgage Financing, Health Insurance, Venture Capital, Diaspora SMEs, Dual Citizenship-Passport Renewal, Immigration and Resettlement tips.

NBS TV the official media partner will be attending the Diaspora get together and has pledged to broadcast the business breakfast live giving our partners more visibility both on social media and mainstream television. Organized in partnership with the Ugandan Diaspora Network, the event organizers have reached out to Uganda investment Authority, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Promote Uganda, Uganda Tourism Board, Uganda Wildlife Authority, Bank of Uganda, leading commercial banks with diaspora products and real estate developers looking for new buyers for upscale developments in Kampala.

Some of the confirmed guest speakers so far include Dr. Maggie Kigozi – Patron Ugandan Diaspora Network and Director Pepsi-Cola Uganda who will lead the delegation of business entrepreneurs, Victoria Sekitoleko former Director FAO in China, Dr. Andrew Seguya – former Executive Director – UWA, Mr. Godfrey Ssemaganda a motivational Wealth Creation trainer from UK, Mr. Paul Omara – Chief Executive Officer NGETTA Holdings, Coach Robert Katende and Phiona Mutesi – Queen of Katwe movie stars will also be in attendance to mentor the Ugandan youth in Toronto.

Other expected highlights will include a promotion and marketing campaign dubbed Proudly Uganda promoting Uganda’s Wildlife and scenic beauty as we tap into the Eaton Center traffic. Here we are hoping to engage Uganda Tourism Board, Uganda Wildlife Authority and Ngamba Chimpanzee Sanctuary and the Uganda Canadian Diaspora to lead the mini-road show.