Own Africavision Song Contest 8

Own Africavision Song Contest 8, often referred to as OAfSC #8, is the 8th edition of Own Africavision Song Contest. The contest took place in Victoria, Seychelles, following following the country's victory in the 7th edition with the song "Elle est partie" by Sarahmée and Nissa Seych. It was the first time Seychelles had hosted the contest. Organised by the Own African Union of Broadcasting and host broadcaster Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation, the contest was held at the Stade Linité, and consisted of two semi-finals and the final. The three live shows were hosted by Kelly-Mary Annette.

A record of forty-eight countries participated in the contest. Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Lesotho, Liberia, Mali, Niger and Somalia returned to the competition. Sadly Chad, Comoros, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Zambia.

The winner was Mali with the song "Rudio" performed by Fuel Fandango feat. Amadou & Mariam. This was country's first victory. The podium was completed by Morocco, which managed to best their best result achieved four editions ago, and Ivory Coast. Senegal, Algeria and Eritrea, which achieved its best result, rounded out the top 6. Equatorial Guinea managed to beat their best result from their previous participation, placing twelfth, this being the first time that the country is in final. Gabon also achieved their best result to date, placing 12th in the semi final. The edition marked the first time that Egypt, Gambia and Zimbabwe failed to qualify for the final. The host nation Seychelles made history by getting nul points in the final.

Location
Further information on the host country: Seychelles

Host City
Victoria is the capital and largest city of the Republic of the Seychelles, situated on the north-eastern side of Mahé island, the archipelago's main island. The city was first established as the seat of the British colonial government. In 2010, the population of Greater Victoria (including the suburbs) was 26,450 out of the country's total population of 90,945.

The area that would become Victoria was originally settled in 1778 by French colonists after they claimed the island in 1756. The town was called L'Établissement until 1841 when it was renamed to Victoria by the British, after Queen Victoria.

Attractions in the city include a clocktower modelled on Little Ben in London, the courthouse, the Botanical Gardens, the National Museum of History, the Natural History Museum and the Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market. Victoria Market and the brightly coloured fish and fruit markets is the local hot spot for the Seychellois people.

Venue
Stad Linité is a multi-use stadium in Victoria, Seychelles. It is known as the national stadium of the nation of Seychelles. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 10,000 and was built in 1992. The stadium plays host also to most of the home games of the Seychelles national football team. The stadium received in February 2007 an artificial turf pitch 3rd generation, One Star field test, by FIFA's development programme "win in Africa with Africa".

Semi-final Allocation Draw
The draw to determine the allocation of the participating countries into their respective semi-finals took place on 30 August 2021. The draw decided in which half of the respective semi-finals each country would perform, with the exact running order determined by the producers of the show at a later date. Twenty-one countries participated in each semi-final. From each semi-final, ten countries joined the host in the final, where a total of twenty-six countries participated.

The forty-two semi-finalists were allocated into six pots, based on their geographical place and cultural similarities. Drawing from different pots helps in reducing the chance of so-called neighbour voting and increasing suspense in the semi-finals. Each time a country was drawn from the pot, its semi-final and half of the semi-final was determined.

The six pots were the following:

Semi-final 1
Twenty-one countries participated in the first semi-final. Burkina Faso, Ghana and Uganda also voted in this semi-final.

Semi-final 2
Twenty-one countries participated in the second semi-final. Angola, Republic of the Congo and Seychelles also voted in this semi-final.

Other countries
Eligibility for potential participation in the Own Africavision Song Contest requires a national broadcaster with active OAUB membership that would be able to broadcast the contest. As in every edition, an invitation to all the members has been sent in order to confirm whether they will participate or not.
 * The nation withdrew following the departure of their previous HoD, however a new HoD confirmed the Chadian participation 20 minutes after the previous HoD left. Five hours and one minute after the new HoD announced they would be participating, the Chadian broadcaster announced that the new HoD left. The nation was unable to find a new HoD in time to participate.
 * The nation withdrew following the resignation of their previous HoD.
 * Despite initially confirming for the edition, the Twitter account @afscdjibouti announced that both of the artists it was in contact with refused, one because she was contacted by Gabon to represent them in this edition, and the other was a flat refusal.
 * The nation failed to respond to the invitation given by the OAUB.
 * Despite initially confirming their presence in the Seychelles, the nation failed to submit an entry in time, and was forced to withdraw.
 * The announced that they will be taking a one edition break.
 * The nation failed to respond to the invitation given by the OAUB.
 * The nation annouced they would withdraw, as they would have been put into the QF otherwise. A return next edition is likely.