Kapsowar Cultural Festival: Celebrating Heritage and Unity

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Culture

The Kapsowar Cultural Festival was held yesterday at Moi Kapsowar Girls in the Kapsowar Ward, Marakwet West Sub County bringing together the community to celebrate and reflect on their rich and vibrant cultural heritage.

The festival featured captivating performances from various cultural dancers, highlighting the unity and diversity of the region. Korir Wesley, a soloist from the Tumbai Cultural Dancers in Tumeiyo sub-location, Kipsaiya location, Kapsowar ward, emphasized the festival’s importance.

“This cultural festival is significant as it brings people together, entertains, and promotes growth.  He noted that it reminds residents of how people dressed during weddings, peace treaties, meetings with neighboring communities, and childbirth ceremonies.”

Through their songs and dances, the performers also preached peace, Wesley explained, stressing the need to uphold cultural practices that promote peace and discourage those that lead to conflicts. Joshua Kipruto, MCA Kapsowar ward, assured that this festival is just the beginning. “This is not the last cultural festival in Kapsowar but the first of many to come,” he stated.

Kipruto highlighted the role of dance groups in curbing idleness among the youth. “Today is not only about culture but also about identifying our youths’ talents,” he added. He promised to secure more funding for the festival to benefit more groups. “The only way to empower these groups is through funding, and I will look into allocating more money for the festival,” he assured.

Purity Koima, County Executive for Sports, Gender, Culture, Youth Affairs, and Children, acknowledged the financial support from various wards for the festival. “In the past financial year, five wards allocated money for the cultural festival, and we are now in our second ward,” she said, thanking those who registered with the ward administrator to participate.

Koima stressed the importance of preserving good cultural practices while eliminating harmful ones like FGM. “There are good cultural exercises that need to be maintained, such as lullabies and festival songs, and we must do away with the bad ones,” she noted.

Participants at the festival will receive up to Sh25,000 each. Koima urged all 20 wards in the county to set aside funds for the cultural festival. “We need to make talent profitable for our people,” she added. Koima noted that plans are also underway to establish a county cultural festival platform where people can showcase their talents and sell their cultural items as a source of revenue.

“This festival is also a tourist attraction,” Koima noted, highlighting the potential for cultural tourism in the region.