Gorée Island hosts SIRA from 23 October to 15 November
Published on 10/11/2026 at 07:27 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael MĂŒller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWSKey points in brief
- Gorée Island will host the SIRA craft fair from 23 October to 15 November 2026.
- SIRA opens on 23 October 2026 with handicrafts from Senegal's 14 regions and six neighbouring countries.
- Gorée Island lies opposite Dakar and has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1978.
GorĂ©e Island (Ăle de GorĂ©e) in Dakar will host the SIRA craft fair from 23 October to 15 November 2026. The event brings together handicrafts from Senegal's 14 regions and six neighbouring countries on the historic island off Senegal's coast.
SIRA opens on 23 October 2026, giving visitors a dated cultural event at one of West Africa's best-known heritage sites during the wider period of the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games.
SIRA opens on Gorée Island on 23 October 2026
The fair is organised by Salons Gorée, whose programme describes SIRA as the Salon de l'Intégration Régionale et Africaine. The organiser says the event will run from 23 October to 15 November 2026 on the island of Gorée.
Augustin Senghor, the mayor of Gorée, is scheduled to open the fair on 23 October 2026. Exhibitors will represent Senegal's 14 regions and six neighbouring countries: Cape Verde, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali and Mauritania. Their regional and national handicrafts will be available for purchase during the fair. The SIRA programme and dates are published by Salons Gorée.
The event's timing connects a craft fair on the island with a major period for Dakar. The Youth Olympic Games are scheduled from 31 October to 13 November 2026, so SIRA continues before, during and after those dates rather than being confined to the competition programme.
Gorée Island's heritage gives the fair a historic setting
UNESCO places the island opposite Dakar, off the coast of Senegal. It describes a settlement whose architecture contrasts former slave quarters with the elegant houses of slave traders. The island's history spans the period from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century, when it was a major slave-trading centre on the African coast.
The site includes fortifications on a rocky plateau, historic buildings, streets and squares. UNESCO says the island was designated a historic site in 1944 and inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978. SIRA therefore takes place within a protected memorial landscape, not in a newly built exhibition venue. The UNESCO heritage record records the island's location, history and status.
Crafts from 20 territories will meet on the island
The published programme gives SIRA a regional scope rather than a single-country focus. Senegal's 14 regions are listed alongside six neighbouring countries, allowing the fair to present different craft traditions in the same island setting.
That arrangement also gives the event a clear connection with Gorée Island's long role as a place of contact between Africa and other parts of the world. UNESCO describes the World Heritage site as a place of exchange and dialogue, while the fair's stated format brings contemporary regional production into that setting.
Visiting Gorée Island: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- SIRA takes place on Gorée Island from 23 October to 15 November 2026, with the opening scheduled for 23 October 2026.
- The fair is an event on the island itself, and the published programme identifies Salons Gorée as its organiser. The programme does not state a general admission policy.
- Gorée Island lies opposite Dakar, off Senegal's coast. Its historic streets, squares, fortifications and former slave quarters form part of the World Heritage setting.
- French is Senegal's official language, and the national currency is the West African CFA franc.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
Searching for Gorée Island on social platforms
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Frequently asked questions about Gorée Island
When does SIRA take place at Gorée Island?
SIRA runs from 23 October to 15 November 2026, with the opening on 23 October 2026.
Where is Gorée Island and how do you get there?
Gorée Island lies off the coast of Senegal opposite Dakar. The checked programme identifies the island as the venue for SIRA.
What is Gorée Island?
It is a World Heritage island and memorial site whose history includes major slave-trading activity from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century. UNESCO inscribed it on the World Heritage List in 1978.
