Situated in the rolling hills of Matobo, surrounded by rich history trailing back to over 400 00 years ago, the Amagugu International Heritage Center is one of Zimbabwe’s foremost culture preserve centres. For those who have been unfortunate to not visit the Motobo Hills, this is Zimbabwe’s biggest Heritage Site and the country’s only UNESCO Cultural Landscape.
In the spirit of progress, the Amagugu folks have decided to host a 6-day inaugural Matobo Heritage Festival. This educational traditional culture festival mainly aimed at students is a welcome development in a nation where the elders are concerned about culture erosion. In the spirit of being educational, from the 31st of July to the 4th of August, the Festival will be aimed at the Primary, High School and Tertiary institution crowd.
However, on the last day which is the 5th of August, the festival will welcome the general public with an impressive lineup to keep the fun going. All-female acapella outfit Nobuntu will be there to showcase their vocal prowess. In an apparent tribute to our culture of percussion, the festival organisers have promised a ‘drumming explosion’ from Drums of Peace and Djembe Monks. More the reason to be there!
Speaking to Sunday News, the Programmes Manager at Amagugu, Butholezwe Kgosi Nyathi said,
“The festival is designed primarily for institutions of learning. The desire is to be an educational festival, and we want to be responsive to the demands of the new education curriculum. We are rural based enterprises and our aim is to promote rural based talents and preserve various cultural heritage elements in Matopo, which have been marginalised by contemporary setups which undermine the importance of traditional culture.”
Make sure that you make your way to the beautifully sculpted landscape of Matobo to experience traditional culture in its element. #ENTHUSE strongly recommends this one!
