• Boubou, the Senegalese painter known for painting portraits upside down, has more than 5 million followers on social media 

• In partnership with ONE Academy, he created a new painting at a school in Dakar, in front of a live audience of students and teachers; the event was livestreamed for audiences around the world 

• Alongside Boubou, children present added a handprint to a shared canvas to convey the inspirational message “THESE HANDS WILL CHANGE THE WORLD”, demonstrating that each and every one has the capacity within them to create something beautiful to change the world for good.

• ONE Academy is the ONE Campaign’s free platform designed to  teach young people across Africa practical advocacy and campaigning skills to create meaningful change in their communities.

DAKAR, SENEGAL – November 8, 2026 – ONE Academy, the free advocacy skill-building platform from The ONE Campaign for young people across Africa, hosted Senegalese artist Boubou for a live painting event in front of schoolchildren, teachers and youth in Dakar on Saturday, November 7, during the Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026. 

Boubou, a painter who has built an audience of 3.6 million followers on Instagram and 1.8 million on TikTok, creates portraits upside down, often using everyday objects in place of brushes. His 2019 portrait of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, painted with a dumbbell, was reshared by the actor himself. He has since painted figures including Sadio Mané, LeBron James and Neymar. 

The event, held at Amadou Diagne Wore Elementary School, featured a live painting by Boubou, with close-up projections of him creating the work of art displayed on a big screen so that everyone in the hall could follow each stroke. Children then added their handprints to a long canvas depicting the message, and Boubou integrated their palm prints into the piece to depict the theme, ‘THESE HANDS WILL CHANGE THE WORLD’.

The entire experience was simultaneously streamed live on ONE’s YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and on ONE en Afrique on Facebook, alongside Boubou’s TikTok, taking the moment far beyond the room.

ONE Academy is a free, certificate-granting platform that helps young people across Africa understand the issues shaping their world, build practical advocacy and leadership skills, and take action in their communities. Young adults aged 18 to 35 were invited to join, with sign-up available on the day through a QR code and support from the ONE Academy team.

The choice of having the live experience during the Youth Olympic games was to tie in the future of development to an ongoing global cultural and sports moment for young people. The ongoing Youth Olympic Games being held in Senegal span from Saturday, October 31 to Friday, November 13, and marks the first Olympic sporting event ever held on African soil.

Serah Makka, the ONE Campaign’s Executive Director for Africa, said:

“Africa’s next generation already has the passion to create change. What young people need is access to the knowledge, skills and networks that turn that energy into action. Boubou is a prime example of what you can achieve with a unique vision and a refusal to be told what is impossible. Millions of people take inspiration from his groundbreaking work.

“Our goal is for every child in that hall, and every young person watching online, to know that they hold power in their hands and that their voice can change the world. ONE Academy puts the tools in their hands.”

Boubou said:

“Art gave me the freedom to see things differently. People watch me paint upside down and with whatever is in my hands, and some think I am doing it the wrong way round. For me, it is simply my way, and it taught me that there is more than one way to create art.

“I wanted every child in that hall to leave knowing that their ideas matter and that they can make a difference. When you see a painting appear in front of you, stroke by stroke, you see that art belongs to everyone. When the children added their handprints to the canvas, I hoped they would see it as a promise to themselves. Their hands can create the future.”

Mark Green, CEO of the ONE Campaign, said:

“The Youth Olympic Games are being bhosted in Dakar, marking the first Olympic event ever held on African soil. This is a reminder of something young Africans already know: talent, ambition and hope are in abundant supply here. Sport and art have the rare power to harness and accelerate that hope. They cross borders and languages, and they show people what is possible in today’s world.

“But hope must be matched with opportunity. That is why we created ONE Academy: to give young Africans the knowledge, skills and networks to turn their passion into action. When millions of people watch Boubou paint, we see culture doing what it does best, which is inspiring a generation that can change the world. Our job is to make sure they have the tools to do it.”

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About the ONE Campaign: 

ONE is a global, nonpartisan organisation advocating for the investments needed to create economic opportunities and healthier lives in Africa. Since 2004, we have helped secure more than $1 trillion in new investments to build a safer, more prosperous world. Our trusted advocacy combines hard-hitting data, grassroots activism and political engagement to influence decision-makers and drive lasting change. Learn more at ONE.org 

About ONE Academy: ONE Academy is a free, certificate-granting digital learning platform from the ONE Campaign for young people aged 18–35 across Africa. It combines online courses, gamified learning, peer networks and practical resources to build advocacy, leadership and career-ready skills, and gives learners opportunities to take action on issues from education to health. It is available in English and French. Learn more at oneacademy.org