Cultural festivals have lately dominated the local social calendar with various tribal groupings showcasing their respective cultural practices either through music, dance, food and art in a celebratory and appreciative tone.
One such is the ‘Cisiya Nkulu Festival’ which is an annual celebration of the Veekuhane culture that will this year be held on the 23rd of September at the headquarters of Basubiya, Kavimba village. The inaugural festival was held in 2009 with the aim of fostering community participation and self-development.
Basubiya from Chobe annually host the cultural festival with the purpose of preserving, showcasing and promoting their unique rich culture. The festival that will this year be held under the theme ‘Promoting and Celebrating Our Dress Code and Language’ will bring together the tribe to interact and showcase their culture in the form of food, dance and attire.
Some of the cultural activities that will be demonstrated include the Subiya traditional way of hunting, the use of spear in the olden days, the use of traditional musical instruments that were used before the radios were invented, the use of cattle to plough before tractors were used and the demonstration of the Subiya cultural wedding.
An experience of the mokoro will also be on list of activities.
The Cisiya Nkulu Trust Chairman Samuel Tshekonyana told The Weekender that the festival is held annually as a way of sharing and preserving the Subiya culture. Tshekonyana added that the cultural festival also seeks to promote tourism as they want to compress and showcase their culture to tourists so that they do not only attend the event but also visit the area to learn of the Subiya culture.
Doors will open at 0800 hrs till late and it will be a free entrance at the Kavimba Cultural Site. Those willing to pitch up their stalls are highly welcome but offered on a first come first serve basis for a fee.
Meanwhile, the Chobe District Council Chairman Chimney Mululwani has appreciated that the event will improve the economic livelihoods of their communities as the festival brings different value chains that will empower the residents of Chobe. He highlighted that stalls for selling the different Subiya cultural foods, clothes, beverages and wild fruits will be pitched where the community members will be selling those to the attendants.
“Public transportation will be used mostly to transport attendants to and from the events as well as to the historical areas that will be visited on the day before (Friday)which will empower the local public taxi drivers in our area,” he added.
