By Joe-Chintha Garises
KEETMANSHOOP, 8 June 2022 – A Nama Culture Festival, like the one held recently at Keetmanshoop, is to take place in Botswana from 26 – 28 August 2022 at Lokgwabe village, Botswana.
The festival will be under a different theme that still needs to be confirmed by the committee. The aim is centred around reviving culture and language restoration.
Also to contribute to heritage tourism and influence a possible twinning agreement between the Kgalagadi District and Hardap //Kharas regions because of their shared history. Hence deliberate invitations to local authorities from both regions.
“From Namibia, we fully support and encourage our people from Namibia (chiefs, traditional councillors, and cultural groups) to travel in big numbers in order to support our brothers and sisters in Botswana in their endeavor to celebrate their culture,” Antonio Stuurman, who is the public relations officer in Namibia for the Nama Cultural Festival, said on Wednesday.
The Namibian government is not involved in the festival. But based on previous attendance by government representatives, the festival’s committee is convinced that the government is supportive of the event.
This is not a continuation of the Namibian Nama Cultural Festival but rather a complement to it as the challenges in Botswana are completely different. Therefore, the support of Namibians is needed to enhance what has been lost in Botswana with more emphasis on language restoration and reviving the cultural norms and traditions.
“The festival-goers will learn about traditional herbs as well as Nama traditional food. There will be a variety of activities such as cultural dances, poetry, and storytelling around the fire,” Stuurman added. – Namibia Daily News
