Kenya fest showcases cultural diversity

Traditional Chinese performances were the highlight of a grand Kenyan festival at the shores of Lake Victoria, the world's second-largest freshwater lake, giving locals a taste of rich Chinese culture.

The Isambo Beach Carnival, being held in Busia County just before Christmas until the end of the year, featured local cultural events such as water sports and fishing that celebrate western Kenya's abundance of rivers, streams and lakes. For the Luhya tribe in the western parts of Kenya, Isambo means celebration.

Known for its cultural diversity, the carnival also showcased cultural performances by traditional troupes from countries such as Uganda, Burundi, South Korea and China.

During the festival, teachers and students from the Confucius Institute of the University of Nairobi displayed traditional Chinese cultural performances such as dragon boat racing, face-changing, also known as bian lian, and kung fu.

Wang Shangxue, the director of the Confucius Institute at the University of Nairobi, said they participated in the festival to make people from different countries appreciate the beauty of each other's culture, and facilitate understanding between different peoples. The institute has contributed to the festival, which is held annually, over the past several years, she said.

"Partnership with the local communities is very important because it facilitates cultural exchange between different communities. Having been to different parts of Kenya, I can tell that the people of Busia are different in terms of their traditions and cultural activities such as boat racing, long-distance swimming and wrestling, so I learned something new," Wang said.

"On the other hand, by bringing Chinese performances and art to such remote places, we make the local community learn something new which is different from what they are used to. In this way, we start to appreciate the beauty of each other's culture through such cross-cultural communication. This makes it easier to chart out future collaborative efforts because we have learned to value each other's cultural beauty," she added.

She said the Confucius Institute at the University of Nairobi has been participating in many other cultural events in Kenya, including the Nairobi International Cultural Festival and the annual Lake Turkana Cultural Festival.

Wang said culture in tourism is important because as a Chinese she found western Kenya to be beautiful and endowed with natural attractions such as Lake Victoria, islands, unique bird species, and massive rivers that she would recommend to her fellow Chinese.

"We are ready to partner with the local communities and leaders to develop available natural resources in a sustainable way. Supporting locals in using resources like the lake to promote eco-tourism through such cultural festivals is one of the good ways to carry out tourism sustainably," Wang said.

She said that at the Confucius Institute, they believe language plays a big role in the exchange of ideas and by learning each other's language, it is possible to attract Chinese tourists to far-flung areas by having local tour guides and operators who can communicate with the Chinese. In this way, it is easier to exchange ideas on sustainability and ways in which local resources can be used to uplift local people's lives while protecting natural resources, Wang said.

Ababu Namwamba, Kenya's newly appointed Permanent Representative to the United Nations Environment Programme, said the local community is a key stakeholder in sustainable development and has to be taken on board while promoting eco-tourism.

Constance Wanyama, a local fisherman and a member of the Songa Mbele community-based organization, which participated in boat racing at the carnival, said the local fishermen are faced with challenges such as reduced fish stocks due to environmental pollution and illegal fishing.