Festival au Désert

It was founded and directed by Manny Ansar, and attracted thousands of visitors, bringing a huge boost to the economy.

[4] This tradition, known as the Takoubelt in Kidal and Temakannit in Timbuktu, was an annual meeting of Tuareg tribes of the region, where they played and shared music as well as discussing problems and resolving conflicts.

However the Festival au Désert aimed to bridge the gap between tradition and modernity, and to broaden understanding of local customs among the international community.

[6][7] After two years of being held in Kidal, Ansar approached Ali Farka Touré, who was very supportive of having the festival run in Timbuktu.

[15] Performers include Tartit, Oumou Sangaré, Lo'Jo, Tinariwen, Robert Plant with Justin Adams, Blackfire, Khaira Arby and her band, Django, and Ali Farka Touré.

[16] The documentary Dambé: The Mali Project (2008) tells the story of a cross-cultural musical adventure over 3000 miles by two Irish musicians, that features performances from the Festival au désert.

[11] The award, given by is given by Freemuse [de], recognises an individual or organisation that "has worked for freedom of musical expression in a remarkable way"[23] Mohamed Aly "Manny" Ansar is a Tuareg man, whose family were nomads.

He gained a master's degree in international public law, and worked for many years in humanitarian projects before following his passion, music.

[22] After the last festival in 2012, Ansar, along with friends in Mali, in refugee camps in Burkino Faso, and others abroad, started planning the "Caravane culturelle de la paix" (Cultural Caravan for Peace), which was to be a multi-ethnic touring festival which would promote peace and harmony through music and talks.

They are an ethnic group, which had the main responsibility for keeping stories of the individual tribes and families alive in the oral tradition, with the narrative accompanied by a musical instrument.

In 2013 the first Caravane concert was held at the refugee camp in Burkina Faso,[5] and in July and August 2013, Tartit, Imharhan, and Mamadou Kelly toured throughout North America.

In subsequent years the Caravane culturelle de la paix was held in Ségou and Mopti in Mali, at Festival Taragalte in Morocco[5] (held in the dunes near M'Hamid El Ghizlane[24]), at refugee camps in Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mauritania, where a lot of Malians are living; and internationally.