Wales gets Womex

Following a year-long campaign to bring the event to the Welsh capital, Womex, the leading world music expo, is to be hosted in Cardiff in 2013. Four hundred national and international journalists are expected to attend the international showcase event, which will include around 60 concerts featuring over 300 artists, and a trade fair exhibiting around 650 companies from over 90 countries. Evening performances will be held at the Wales Millennium Centre, and the daytime showcases, trade fair, conference and film screenings will be held at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff. The bid to host Womex13 was led by Cerdd Cymru: Music Wales, a partnership between the Welsh Music Foundation, Wales Arts International and the Arts Council of Wales, with support from the British Council and Welsh Government. Organisers and Government alike are hoping that the event will promote the music sector of Wales internationally and give music exports a boost. Rt Hon Carwyn Jones AM, First Minister, welcomed the news as “a great opportunity to bring the most important world music stage to Wales as well as developing the sector in a sustainable way”. The ambition to host Womex is supported by the Welsh Government’s new Major Events Strategy, which aims to develop global events in Wales.