In Design Observer Meena Kadri Interviews Emeka Okafor about
Maker Faire Africa:  Meena Kadri Maker Faire Africa is dubbed a
celebration of African ingenuity, innovation and invention. What
is the nature of the celebration?  Emeka Okafor Many DIY-types —
designers, inventors, hackers and tinkerers — in Africa work in
isolation, so part of the celebration is about bringing them
together to enhance, cross-pollinate and provide insights into
the wider impact of their innovations on society. Taking the
focus away from extractive ventures, we instead focus on those
that are doing, making and producing. Globally there is a re-
examination of manufacturing, production and design that is
moving past the classical industrial sense and pointing to more
distributed forms of production. Moving beyond mere celebration,
there is also an interest in the interchange between these
emerging global dynamics and local inspiration in Africa. This
speaks to a far-reaching conversation in which the questions are
posed: “How do we re