Nata SSS Hosts Inaugural Culture Day
Staff Writer | Monday May 7, 2018 13:43
It is expected to attract culture enthusiasts from the Nata-Gweta area, as well as other parts of the country. As small as Botswana is as a country, it is common knowledge that the country hosts a number of different tribes with rich diverse cultural practices, hence the need for cultural festivals, which makes it easier for people to learn about other cultures. For harmony to reign, it is important for individuals to understand each other’s culture.
A teacher at Nata SSS, who is one of the orgnaisers of the cultural festival, Gaethuse Kobe told The Monitor that the event amongst other things, seeks to promote appreciation of culture towards social cohesion.
“We are trying to encourage people to appreciate and love their cultures, while at the same mindful that there are other cultural practices which are different from theirs,” she said.
She said the event is also meant to promote cultural tourism. She explained that it is their hope that in the future, the event will attract travellers from different parts of the world, interested in learning about the lifestyles of the many different tribes residing in the Nata-Gweta region.
Kobe said the event is also intended to raise funds for the official opening of the school, which started operating in 2011.
She urged the public to attend the event in large numbers in order to celebrate the diverse cultures of the people living in the Nata-Gweta areas.
“We also want people to come and have fun,” she added. She said the school has been hard at work, doing consultations around the region.
The festival will have traditional food, games and music. Performers on the day will include Matsosa-Ngwao, Mwathiathicho, Bana BaNtogwa, and Dr. Vom. The festival will boast of a variety of traditional food including mokoto, seswaa, serobe, digwapa, delele, longangale, sebube, zembgwe, tlhapi, phane, mosutlhane, tswii, magapu, dikgobe, kabu, dinawa, and bojalwa jwa Setswana.
What’s a festival without traditional games? The festival will feature a variety of games such as diketo, koi, morabaraba, mhele, thwabi, and dibeke. Other activities scheduled for the day are, dikgafela, dikhwaere, poko, setapa, tsutsube, phathisi, polka, marimba, seperu, and diware.
Tickets for the event for P150 (single), P250 (couple), and P50 (children).