OVER 250 arts stakeholders meet today in Bagamoyo to discuss business opportunities created by the arts sector.
The forum is part of the 41st International Bagamoyo Arts and Culture Festival that commences today and the Vice President Philip Mpango is expected to grace the three-day forum that climaxes this Saturday with performances from various artists.
Bagamoyo Arts and Culture Institute (TaSUBa) in Bagamoyo will be a beehive of activities as the event will involve artists from in and outside the country and will be brightened by a mix of colourful music, theatre, dance, acrobatics, discussions and exhibitions.
Regarding the forum, TaSUBa officials said it aims to bring together artists from different art disciplines within Tanzania to discuss business opportunities and how to improve artistic products so as they benefit them.
The forum will take place at Oceanic Bay Hotel and Resort in Bangamoyo from 10:00AM.
The festival welcomes several dozen cultural groups from all parts of Tanzania to participate in each celebration.
There are also groups from other African countries and occasionally guest groups from Europe.
Besides the three-day rformances at TaSUBa, the festival guests will have an opportunity to visit Saadani National Park as part of supporting the national tourism campaign, ‘The Royal Tour’ that was initiated by President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
The presence of Vice President Mpango in this year’s event was confirmed by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry for Culture, Arts and Sports, Hassan Abbas, earlier this week during a press briefing on the festival’s preparations.
“It is a great honour for us stakeholders, we invited President Samia Suluhu Hassan, and with her great love for this profession, she has directed Vice President Philip Mpango to represent her,” he said.
Abbas confirmed their preparations are complete, highlighting that it will be a vibrant festival involving domestic and foreign groups.
“The opening will be on November 10th; preparations are largely complete.”
The Executive Director of TaSUBa, Herbert Makoye, said they have planned to make the festival a success this year and out of 30 local groups, 27 have confirmed to participate, and eight out of 11 are foreign.
Makoye also said at the festival, there will be exhibitions made by various institutions, including the Tanzania National Parks Authority (Tanapa), the Tanzania Forest Services Agency (TFS) and the National Museum.
“Additionally, 27 arts and cultural groups from in and outside the country have confirmed their participation.”
For this year, groups from various countries, including Canada, Zambia, Kenya, and Mayotte Islands, have already confirmed.
He added the list of local groups and artists who will perform at the festival will soon be released this week.
The Bagamoyo District Commissioner, Zainabu Abdallah has dismissed the guests’ worries about their safety during the festival by assuring all those who will attend the festival that security and safety are their priority.
The 41st International Bagamoyo Arts Festival was originally scheduled for October 22-28 and then postponed to November 5-12.
