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image captionNigerian Chris Obehi was the recipient of Sicily s most prestigious music award earlier this year
In our series of letters from African journalists, Ismail Einashe looks at how the Italian island of Sicily is undergoing cultural change.
On a hot Friday night in Palermo, Sicily s capital, musicians play Senegalese songs outside an African restaurant in the bustling outdoor market of La Vucciria.
The band belongs to Doudou Diouf, a Senegalese musician and owner of the restaurant called Ciwara, which since opening in 2018 has become the focal point for the city s African community.
The sounds of African drumming and rhythm jostle for attention next to the Sicilian traders serving aperol spritz - an Italian aperitif - from their street carts and the restaurants dishing up Sicilian delicacies like caponata, arancini and fried fish.