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Nkululeko Nkala

Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
A STREET Carnival will for the first time be held on the opening day of the Intwasa Arts Festival in Bulawayo to make the festival more exciting.

The staging of the street party is a result of the festival’s partnership with the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, organisers of the Hlanganani/Sanganai Travel and Tourism expo.

Intwasa, which will be held from September 27 to 30, will run concurrently with the travel expo which is also being held in Bulawayo.

Intwasa spokesperson Nkululeko Nkala said they had partnered ZTA to give the festival an international appeal while also promoting the travel expo.

He said people were being encouraged to sign up to be part of the street parade as those with the best displays will be awarded with a prize money of $2 000.

“The street carnival is being held for people to have fun while showcasing their diverse cultures which make them proud Zimbabweans. Those with the best displays or those who will exhibit the best dance routines will be awarded.

“$1 000 will be given to young school going pupils while the other $1 000 will be given to adults. There’re other consolation prizes for other categories which will be announced in due course,” said Nkala.

He said no registration fee will be required to be part of the fun as they wanted as many people as possible to partake in the event.

“We’re looking for groups of 50 individuals each to be part of the carnival. We’re looking for churches, schools, motor clubs, arts groups and companies to register at our offices.

“We want the event to leave an indelible mark in the city and impress delegates who would’ve come for the Hlanganani/Sanganai travel expo.”

Intwasa will also be exhibiting at the travel expo to promote the event to tourists and buyers. While the Harare International Carnival usually features the Brazilian Samba Queens, Nkala said that would not be the case with the Bulawayo edition.

“As much as we want to add a bit of international flavour, we want to create our own massive Bulawayo Street Carnival showcasing our local culture. We’re working on the finer details with ZTA on how to blend our local cultures and give the event an international flavour,” said Nkala.

Preparations for the Intwasa festival, Nkala said, were at an advanced stage with organisers finalising contracts with artistes set to perform.

“We’re still finalising other parts of our programme with our partners. But the popular Women Words and Wine is definitely on this year. All things being equal, we should be releasing the programme of events next month.”