×
NewsDay

AMH is an independent media house free from political ties or outside influence. We have four newspapers: The Zimbabwe Independent, a business weekly published every Friday, The Standard, a weekly published every Sunday, and Southern and NewsDay, our daily newspapers. Each has an online edition.

Rural activity lights up new culture centre

Life & Style
Imagine this: A typical rural home set up in the middle of a low-density suburb in Harare. Well, as much as it may sound absurd, Marlborough Primary School recently created its own rural homestead at the school and they named it the “Culture Centre”. Little boys and girls looking like sharp village youths, sang cultural […]

Imagine this: A typical rural home set up in the middle of a low-density suburb in Harare. Well, as much as it may sound absurd, Marlborough Primary School recently created its own rural homestead at the school and they named it the “Culture Centre”.

Little boys and girls looking like sharp village youths, sang cultural songs to welcome guests before taking them for a tour around their little village, where a hive of cultural activities took place at the launch of their debut Cultural Day.

Pupils from various schools in the capital’s northern central district took part in various cultural activities in the opening ceremony.

During the event, young energetic students displayed vast knowledge of their culture as they took part in traditional dances, played traditional instruments, described African warriors, recited Shona poems, tasted cultural dishes, games and named some of the utensils used in Shona culture.

“A lot of children have been affected by Westernisation and such activities encourage them to know more about their roots and cultural backgrounds,” said the Zimbabwe Association of Theatre for Children and Young People national administrator Washington Masenda.

Masenda, who was guest of honour at the event, said a lot of children had no knowledge of their totems and yet they were a major part of the African culture.

He said his association would soon conduct an intensive training programme on arts and culture in primary schools, so that people would realise that it is not an extra-curricular activity, but a way of life.

The culture centre, which certainly looked like a normal rural homestead, has a hut. Outside the hut a fire was lit and there was a little girl roasting peanuts with her friends all dressed in traditional attire wrapped around their waists and doeks on their heads.

There was also a display of various Shona utensils, instruments and weapons including tsvimbo, gano, rukukwe, gate, rusero, ngoma, ndiro, chirongo and chipfuko, among many others.

“We are happy that the other schools are present and with the initiative and hoping in the near future, given enough time they will also prepare their own presentations to showcase,” said Marlborough Primary School head, Elizabeth Kabasa.

She said the children were very excited about the event and had shown so much interest. It was her hope that the event becomes an annual celebration.

Education inspector, Phillimon Masakanya, who was also present to represent the Education ministry, said it was important that each school should have such a cultural centre and was excited that Marlborough Primary School had succeeded in imparting cultural norms to children.