Ngamiland communities will be treated to the first ever African music festival dubbed Okavango Delta Music Festival (OKMF) secheduled for the 31st of August to 2nd September, opening time 10am. The festival will be held in Tsutsubega settlement, which is located at the edge of the Okavango Delta. It is organised by the Dandridge family from Tsutsubega, with the main objective of generating funds for community development activities. The event is expected to bring together local, regional and international artistes.Tsutsubega is home to approximately 500 people of mostly the ancient Bayei tribe.
One of the event organisers, Sophie Dandridge explained that plans were underway to host the music festival in a wild and ancient forest, surrounded by a beautiful floodplain in the Okavango Delta.She highlighted that the festival would help the community of Tsutsubega to derive direct economic benefits. Dandridge said the community had been faced with a serious challenge of shortage of portable water, revealing that residents walk long distance to Maun to access water and other services. “With the proceedings accumulated from the event, we want to help them by providing a borehole for them to access portable water nearer and also establish a centre for literacy programmes,” she added. Dandridge explained that the three-day event would feature some of the local artistes like Stiga Sola of Jazz Soul and traditional music, Kabo Leburu of Afro Jazz and Soul Connect of Latino Afro Jazz, while international artistes include Gloucester Blues Project of Blue Rocks, Gerald Clark of Jazz all from South Africa. In addition, she said they were expecting some musicians from Zimbabwe such as Flying Bantu of Afro Jazz Reggie and Djembe Monks of Jazz Beats among others.
Dandridge said they decided to hold the festival during the dry season, when the floods from Angola would be surrounding the islands with crystal clear Okavango waters transforming the area into a watery wonderland.She revealed that music fanatics would be camping and would have the chance to appreciate and enjoy the beauty of the delta.She said they would also be entertainment for children and that there would also be an opportunity for boat cruise trips to different destinations such as Moremi. She stated that Safari Life and Capture Africa, as well as Delta Rain, would be offering trips around the delta.
Tickets available online at www.okmusicfestival.com.
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