Matabeleland Development Foundation Celebrates Africa Day
Mpangazitha✍ 
Matabeleland development foundation held it's annual Africa day exhibition at Y. W. C. A to mark and celebrate this year's Africa Day which ran under the theme: “Arts, Culture and Heritage: Levers for Building the Africa we Want”. The AU theme of the year for 2021 presented a unique opportunity for the continent to celebrate its great Pan-Africanists who have played and are still playing a key role in African renaissance and re-birth.
Speaking at the event, the chairman of of Matabeleland development foundation Mr Dominic Moyo encouraged youths to partake in cultural activities as a way of preserving the African heritage, he highlighted that his organization has been in the forefront over the past several year providing skills training to young people, school leavers in particular.
Mr Dominic Moyo with colleagues
They have trained youths with Ehlekweni centers in various skills ranging from carpentry, sculptures, agriculture and various other self development skills. Those doing carpentry are sent to various skills to make furniture for those schools. Various schools have benefitted from this initiative as many now have solar panels all in the efforts of Matabeleland development community foundation.
Various organizations were invited for Africa day celebrations, Angela Nontobeko Malomo and Nichole Ngwenya of Inkatha Qreative Arts presented on Africa day and this year's theme. Angela Moyo said Africans have lost the essence of Ubuntu through sub cultures, religion and race and its time to go back to the basics and identify with who we are and celebrate being African on a daily basis rather wait to be reminded that they are Africans only on the 25th of May. "We need to take pride in our culture and heritage and teach our kids from a very tender age, what it means being African, which is embodied by Ubuntu" added Nicole Ngwenya.
From left: Nicole Ngwenya, Dr Mildred Mkandla, Angela Nontobeko Malomo
With the scourge of drug abuse by today's youths, the presenters encouraged parents to impact the values of Africanism to all the children in their communities not only their children because we are in the backdrop of economic crisis that has led many parents to seek greener pastures across the border leaving their kids unattended and it is the responsibility of the entire community to look after and guide those children as the old Africa adage says:- "It takes an entire village to raise a child"
The event was capped with various African traditional dishes ranging from Moroccan chick peas, East African petushi, Zimbabwean ulude ledobi, umxhanxa and Kenyan salad all prepared by Nonhlanhla Mkandla.
