Bridging Gaps within Inequities through Dialogue, New Concepts, & Policies

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This workshop will feature a presentation on the Africatown Project’s achievements, future vision, and the positive impact of the successful collaboration between ACANA and Chinatown CDC.”

PACDC Africatown Session

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Voffee Jabateh, CEO ACANA and Africatown Project Sponsor.

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Voffee will discuss the project goals of driving economic development, creating jobs and reducing poverty. He will expand on lessons learned from other projects like Chinatown and also key aspects that made the project possible in a neighborhood that has been neglected for years, was prone to gun violence and had no economic development initiatives in place including the role of immigrants.

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With the design of several programs, funded by the Philadelphia Department of Commerce and implemented by ACANA, public sector resources are available to Black Residents businesses in Africatown to drive economic development initiatives to:

• Create jobs, in Southwest Philadelphia
• Increase business ownership among the residents of the community
• Eliminate poverty.

Black Residents business ownership in Southwest Philadelphia and entrepreneurship talent is on display in the community. Their concentration along the commercial corridors of Baltimore, Chester, Woodland, and Elmwood Avenues have led to the international press naming Southwest Philadelphia “Little Africa.” The BBC and France 24 are often in our city doing special features on Black Residents.

What is Africatown?�(Investment and "Tourist Destination Point " for the global African diaspora and other interested persons)

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Where is Africatown?�Census track from 47th and Baltimore Ave to 84th and Lindbergh Blvd.)

Primary area

• Woodland Avenue from 60th to 66th including the commercial corridors of Woodland, Chester, and Elmwood Ave., home to ~ 700 businesses

Secondary area

• Chester Ave. 5400-5800 blocks
• Elmwood Ave. 6500-7300 blocks
• Woodland Ave. 5800-6700 blocks.

Tertiary area

• Eastwick Industrial Park, within the PA 19153 ZIP Code delivery area.

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Lessons Learned

• Vision
• Strategy
• Stakeholder identification, support and buy In
• Collaboration
• Community Engagement

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John Chin, CEO Chinatown CDC

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John will discuss Chinatown CDC, what it took to drive economic development, the community impact for that project and his collaboration with ACANA in Southwest Philadelphia.

Slide Title

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Ahsan, Africatown project developer

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Ahsan will share his thoughts on why he took on the project, along with lessons learned from the Crane Center that benefited the Africatown initiative, ranging from investment financing to project development.

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Tamara Staley,

President & CEO of the Philadelphia Juneteenth Family Inc

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Tamara will discuss how the partnership with ACANA on the Africatown project and initiatives like the Africatown Ambassador Program (ATAP) will foster community buy-in and drive positive changes.

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What is the Africatown Ambassadors Project (ATAP)?

• The goal is to unite like-minded individuals to foster Black pride and promote the African diaspora with integrity.
• Ambassadors will deliver a message of Black unity in our communities, initiating and propagating the lifelong theme: One People, One Cause, One Destiny.
• ATAP will educate communities on the unity of all people, enhancing tourism, business development, youth engagement, and community education with a special focus on cross-cultural inclusion and experiences.

ATAP Responsibilities

• Change Agents: Serve as advocates, defenders of unity, and protectors of Black survival and continuity.
• Community Engagement: Enhance tourism, business development, youth engagement, and community education.
• Media and Campaigns: Develop electronic, social, and print media programming and campaigns.

Africatown Ambassadors Project

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Selection Committee

• One chairperson (ACANA)
• Six committee members (2 representatives each from the African, Caribbean, and African American communities).

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Ambassador Candidates

• 20 candidates selected by the committee

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Ambassador Categories

• Imani Ambassadors: Ages 50 to 65
• Nia Ambassadors: Ages 35 to 49
• Kuumba Ambassadors: Ages 18 to 34

Onboarding

• Orientation: Two-day process covering the concept of Africa Town, roles, responsibilities, commitment, and dedication.
• Training: 20-hour series.

Assignments

Ambassadors will focus on:

1. Tourism
2. Business development
3. Community education
4. Cross-cultural experiences
5. Inclusion

Selection & Onboarding

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Dr. Gaston Mbonglou, Africatown project consultant

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Dr. Gaston will discuss strategies for replicating such initiatives to develop neglected urban Neighborhoods.

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Service Model

Execution

Service Model

Execution

Vision

Strategy

Drawing from the ACANA and Africatown experiences, the best practices for revitalizing neglected urban neighborhoods can be summarized into four major activities.

How to Replicate Africatown

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Build leadership to reduce poverty by:

1. Fostering community trust and partnerships
2. Enabling wealth creation
3. Reducing community degradation and blight
4. Facilitating social integration and equity
5. Promoting self-sufficiency
6. Providing job training, workforce development and job placement
7. Addressing drug addiction and mental health
8. Promoting art, culture, sport and recreation
9. Highlight the community’s cultural identify.

Vision

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• Adapt the vision to the community, its needs, challenges and opportunities
• Define a strategy for poverty reduction, workforce development and job creation through an ecosystem of partners
• A commitment to improve the quality of life within the community.
• Crime reduction through innovative community and business intervention strategies
• Youth entrepreneurship
• Improve relationship and trust with the police (community policing, intercepting violence,…)
• Identify and remove nuisance businesses form the neighborhoods.

Strategy

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A framework, partnerships, programs and services that build a pathway to achieve the organization’s vision and strategy.

Establish revenue generating services (i.e., legal, health care services...)

Leverage social entrepreneurship to build assets in the community and for capital creation

Establish economic development initiatives including technical assistance for SMB, access to grants and loans, infrastructure investments with strong community impact.

Use technology to drive service efficiency and provide a shared service model for local businesses.

Use KPIs to measure success.

Service Model

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Poverty reduction

• Ecosystem of public and private sectors partners to drive economic development
• Strategic coalitions to attract resources into the community
• Promote sport, recreation, arts and culture.

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Improve the Quality of Life

• Workforce development programs
• Facilitate internships for trained youth
• Beautify the community and instill a sense of pride
• Promote the community’s assets to attract visitors.

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Crime reduction

• Reduce crime reduction through innovative community and business intervention strategies.

Execution