#RusingaFestival2019 – mark your diary

8TH EDITION OF THE RUSINGA FESTIVAL SET FOR DECEMBER 19TH AND 20TH

(Posted 19th July 2019)

The Rusinga Festival celebrates its 8th edition on Rusinga Island from the 19th to the 20th of December. The festival offers two days of music, fashion, film, food, artistry, literature, sports and conversations that take visitors back in time into the wealth of the Suba Culture.

The festival is a cultural answer to the question, “Can a people die?”

As a result of assimilation and intermarriage with the Luo tribe, the Suba culture has been under pressure and the language is now listed in UNESCO’s Red Book of Endangered Languages (2003).

Much has changed since 2011 when the first edition of the festival opened its doors, but their founding principle remains the same – bridging the gap between cultures is necessary for peace, stability and development.

Eight years later has the Rusinga Festival grown tremendously to become a trademark in the Kenyan cultural festivals scene. The Rusinga Festival prides itself as the biggest cultural event in Western Kenya and every December do the organizers welcome thousands of attendees from across the country and beyond.

The 2019 edition is tailored along the theme “The Island Remembers” – which gives the event a reason to reminisce, celebrate, re-imagine and connect Rusinga Island to the world through art, culture and literature.

In celebrating, The Island Remembers, the festival will also explore and showcase the theme in many creative and cultural forms, while at the same time celebrating the African narrative. It will be interesting to see how the theme will play out in conversations on tourism, culture, identity, art, theatre, film, fashion, entrepreneurship, leadership, environment, disability, technology, women and youth empowerment, health, gender throughout the festival.

Said the organizers to www.ATCNews.org: ‘We look forward to celebrating with you in what promises to be another remarkable year! You will be left in awe as you lap up the rich Suba culture and stunning serenade of nature with every sunset and sunrise over Africa’s largest fresh water lake‘.

Added information can be found via https://web.facebook.com/RusingaFestival/