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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
DUMISA Art and Cultural Centre, located on the outskirts of Victoria Falls, has partnered with a traditional imbube group, Inguquko Shining Stars to revive the promotion of traditional music and dance while also providing entertainment for visitors.

Established by local entrepreneur Lizzy Ngwenya a few years ago, the cultural centre seeks to promote the Ndebele culture by reviving traditional amaqhugwana (huts for the Ndebeles) and promoting traditional music.

It is located about 25kms outside Victoria Falls and about 5kms from the airport making it a perfect location for family outings, traditional gatherings and braais.

Last week, President Mnangagwa directed that restaurants in Victoria Falls operate for extended hours under more relaxed regulations.

This was after the opening of Kazungula and Livingstone border posts to allow tourism activities to resume as the majority of people in the resort city were vaccinated against Covid-19.

Following this, Ngwenya said she is now working on reviving the place that, like many others, was affected by Covid-19. To do so, she has roped in Inguquko Shining Stars to perform at the venue as the main group.

She said the centre used to host bush dinners and other traditional functions with the last traditional music festival attracting traditional groups from across the province.

However, Ngwenya said she stopped hosting traditional groups as they developed a tendency to disappear after securing gigs elsewhere.

“We used to bring traditional music and dance groups here when we started so that they entertain our clients. We’d then recommend them to go and play at other events, but each time they got money, they’d disappear. It happened with three groups and we decided to shelve the idea,” said Ngwenya.

The place offers an open space venue, chalets, a campsite, craft shop and a cultural village resembling King Mzilikazi’s kraal. Construction work for a multi-purpose hall has started.

The centre could be an opportunity for more than a dozen traditional groups domiciled in Victoria Falls whose livelihoods were affected by the global pandemic.

Clever Mathe, Inguquko Shining Stars founding appealed to the corporate sector and members of the public to support Dumisa Art and Cultural Centre as it has potential to uplift the arts sector.

“This place should be supported because it carries opportunities for us in music. We can earn a living out of this place because of its traditional nature, which aligns with our music.

“We’re grateful to the owner of Dumisa and we want to thank her for bringing us on board. Other traditional dance groups should also come on board so we promote our culture and music,” Mathe said. -@ncubeleon