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Bongani Ndlovu, Showbiz Correspondent
THE Minister of Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation Kirsty Coventry has urged Zimbabweans not to let the Covid-19 pandemic dampen their spirits but instead take time to celebrate their diverse cultures as the country is commemorates Culture Week.

She said this yesterday during an online Zoom meeting for the launch of the National Culture Week celebrations that started yesterday and end on Saturday.

The Culture Week theme this year is “Zimbabwe @ 40, celebrating our cultural diversity and heritage” as the nation is celebrating 40 years of Independence as well the diverse cultural expressions.

Minister Coventry said Covid-19 should not break people’s spirits and lead them to shun their culture, especially during this time when they are interacting with people more online.

“As we practice social distancing, let us not forget our values of Ubuntu/Unhu. Let us continue to co-exist and engage in respectful dialogue even on social media, where most of us now spend much of our time on as a result of the lockdown measures.

“In our online conversations, let us celebrate our cultural diversity as it is the driving force for development.”

She said Ubuntu is founded on caring for each other and this is very important in the fight against Covid-19.

“Let us show the world that we are a people with a culture of respect by adhering to the set lockdown measures. Let us be are proud of our heritage by caring for one another and not exposing each other to Covid-19 so that we can use our cultural identity to win the fight over this disease that threatens our existence as humanity.”

This year’s Culture Week which is being celebrated online due to the ban of public gatherings and ongoing lockdown, Minister Coventry said, was significant as families are spending a lot of time together due to the national lockdown measures. She challenged parents to use this time to share their cultural knowledge.

“This (lockdown) provides an opportunity for us as Zimbabweans to appreciate and enhance our knowledge and understanding of our own culture and those of others around us. It is time for parents to pass on our understating of those cultural practices that we treasure to our children and instil in them the values of the diversity of cultural expressions,” said Minister Coventry.

Sadly, she said Covid-19 has affected life and culture as people have known it locally and globally.

“Covid-19 has affected many of our cultural events like funerals, burials, weddings, and other social practices that bring people together to celebrate or support each other. Thus Covid-19 has challenged some cultural practices and traditions that we had known as part of our existence as the people of Zimbabwe and the world.”

This year’s Culture Week national celebrations were supposed to be launched by President Mnangagwa in the Midlands province. However, due to the national lockdown restrictions meant to mitigate the spread of the deadly Covid-19 disease in the country, this had to be shelved.

Yesterday, a discussion to celebrate International Museums Day was held through an online conversation between International Organisation of Museums (ICOM) of United Kingdom, The British Council, The National Gallery of Zimbabwe (NGZ), Victoria Albert Museum and the Mori Museum of Japan.

Tomorrow, the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe will lead an online discussion on the impact of Covid-19 on traditional Zimbabwean cultural practices. The National Gallery of Zimbabwe will also showcase an online visual exhibition titled Freedom through the eyes of General Tongo which will be followed by online conversations on Thursday and Friday.

To cap it all, on Saturday evening, a musical concert featuring some of the country’s top artists will be screened on ZBCtv as well as on social media platforms.

Every year, Culture Week is planned to coincide with the Unesco World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development which falls on May 21. – Follow on Twitter @bonganinkunzi