Lake Zone Cultural and Tourism Festival to light up Simiyu

SIMIYU: THE forthcoming Lake Zone Cultural and Tourism Festival set to take place in Bariadi, Simiyu next month is one of the ways of heeding to President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s call to ensure that every region organises a cultural festival.

After a thorough research, Kilimanjaro One Travel and Tours, the organisers of the much awaited event, saw the need to organise this event in Bariadi.

“The people of Simiyu have a very unique culture that most people do not know about, we as Kilimanjaro One Travel and Tours want to bring out this culture and promote it in and out of the country so that Simiyu can become one of the top destinations in terms of cultural tourism,” says Christina Emmanuel, the Managing Director of the company.

She says this is the first time they are organising the event that they have been tirelessly working on ever since the President issued the directive that every region must host its own cultural festival.

“Though it is the first one, we want to assure Simiyu residents and neighbouring regions that we are coming up with something exceptional that will leave a lasting memory in Bariadi where the event is happening on July 5, 6 and 7 this year at the CCM Grounds,” she says.

The event, according to the Managing Director, is expected to include traditional dances including those from the Gika and Gulu tribes, cultural and business exhibitions, games, traditional foods, not forgetting the sugarcane corner and touristic sites tours.

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According to Ms Emmanuel, the three days are expected to attract over 7000 participants from in and out of the country to among other things promote cultural tourism. She says there will be no entry fee to the event, hence Simiyu residents are encouraged to attend in large numbers as they will play host to participants from other regions.

“We want as many people as possible to come and learn more about the Sukuma culture, you will be surprised that there are so many people from this region who do not know some of the things about their own culture hence we believe this will help many people,” she says.

She says they are working in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Sports, National Arts Council, The Simiyu Regional Commissioner’s Office, Tanzania Tourism Board and other stakeholders to make this happen.

On his part, the Kilimanjaro One Travel and Tours Director Mohamed Hatibu is confident that this is going to be one of the biggest and memorable festivals in Tanzania.

“We are bringing something unique in Simiyu and it will be there to stay because even as we explore other areas, this one will happen every year and we look forward to its growth year after year,” he says.

Mr Hatibu further states that the event is also meant to merge culture and tourism which are at the moment inseparable as most tourists are not just keen in coming to see wildlife and enjoy nature, they are equally interested in learning the different Tanzanian cultures and the Sukuma one is among them.

“This is currently big business that as a country we should embrace. Our President, Dr Samia Suluhu Hassan is trying so hard to promote our country out there, especially through the Royal Tour film. We as key stakeholders are more than ready to support her in this initiative,” says Mr Hatibu.

He appealed to businesspeople, companies, institutions and organisations to support this fascinating event as a way of helping the government in the promotion of culture and tourism in Simiyu Region.

“We are well-prepared and we are sure that this festival will be successful and will be held every year,” he said, adding that the festival was expected to attract tourists from within and outside the country.

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Speaking recently, the Director of the Department of Promotion and Development of Arts from BASATA, Edward Buganga hailed the organisers for promoting culture and tourism in the country, calling on other stakeholders to support the festival morally and financially.

“It is a big festival of its kind that we as Tanzanians should be proud of, that it is our festival for the development of our culture and tourism,” he says, and adds that BASATA would cooperate well with organisers to ensure the event is successful.

On his part, TTB Marketing Officer, Nassor Garamatatu congratulated the tour company for seeing the importance of connecting culture and tourism as the two are inextricably linked and cannot be separated.

“Right now, we as TTB are very focused on promoting cultural tourism, that’s why we are ready to support this international event to promote cultural and tourist attractions in Simiyu Region,” said Garamatatu and concludes strongly that all roads must lead to Bariadi’s CCM Grounds on July 5, 6 and 7th.

Among the partners and sponsors of the festival include Tigo, NMB Bank, Z&M General Traders, Widescope Enterprises Limited, and Carehealth and Hospitality Services