2019 Prince Claus Awards

On 4 December 2019, in a ceremony at the Royal Palace Amsterdam, HRH Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands presented seven Prince Claus Awards for outstanding achievement in the field of culture and development. Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and their Royal Highnesses Princess Beatrix and Princess Mabel of the Netherlands were in attendance. (Nederlands)

Today, in a ceremony at the Royal Palace Amsterdam, HRH Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands presented seven Prince Claus Awards for outstanding achievement in the field of culture and development. Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and their Royal Highnesses Princess Beatrix, Princess Laurentien and Princess Mabel of the Netherlands were in attendance, as well as government representatives and international and Dutch guests. Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Sigrid Kaag spoke at the ceremony. HRH Prince Constantijn, Chair of the Board of the Prince Claus Fund, presented the Awards to:

Principal Prince Claus Laureate

Kamala Ibrahim Ishag (visual artist, Sudan)

Prince Claus Laureates

Ambulante (documentary film organisation, Mexico)

Mariam Kamara (architect, Niger)

Bill Kouélany (visual artist, writer, Congo-Brazzaville)

Djamila Ribeiro (philosopher, Brazil)

Anocha Suwichakornpong (filmmaker, Thailand)

Next Generation Prince Claus Laureate

Mónica Ojeda Franco (writer, Ecuador)

The Prince Claus Awards Ceremony included special performances by Djily Bagdad of Y’en a Marre (2015 Prince Claus Laureate) and singers Mahsa Vahdat and Nai Barghouti. The ceremony was moderated by international broadcast journalist Ghida Fakhry.

About the Prince Claus Awards: Since 1997, the Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development has presented Prince Claus Awards to individuals, groups and organisations whose cultural actions have a positive impact on the development of their societies, mainly in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. This year all the Prince Claus Laureates are women or women-run organisations. Although gender was not emphasized in the requests for nominations, the nominations received and the Prince Claus Awards Committee’s resulting recommendations acknowledge a trend of exemplary women making strides in their fields. The 2019 Prince Claus Laureates will also be honoured at ceremonies in their home countries in the coming months.

About the Prince Claus Fund: The Prince Claus Fund supports, connects, and celebrates artists and cultural practitioners where cultural expression is under pressure.

Photos from the 2019 Prince Claus Awards ceremony in Amsterdam can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/wkf6jag