Organisers of this year’s Mulhako wa Alhomwe cultural festival scheduled for October 18 at Chonde in Mulanje District have said people must expect a different event, with lots of changes on the line-up.
Mulhako wa Alhomwe board chairperson Muchanakhwaye Mpuluka said this in an interview on Sunday, adding that preparations for the festival, budgeted at K300 million, are at an advanced stage.
He said the theme for the festival is ‘Heritage preservation for sustainable development’.
“We are using this theme in all we are going to do and all we are going to showcase,” said Mpuluka. “We are ready for the function.”
He further said the festival is open to everyone as has always been in preceding years.
He said the festival is more than a celebration of the Lhomwe culture, but a gathering that brings together diverse cultures; hence, it unites Malawians.
In a separate interview, one of the festival goers, Lawrence Namuthuwa, said he was looking forward to attending the festival again this year.
“It’s a place where we learn more about the Lhomwe culture, and we also get to interact and socialise with people from other cultures,” he said.
Among others, the festival aims to preserve and promote Lhomwe culture as well as offer a platform for people from diverse cultures to interact and share ideas.
Mulhako wa Alhomwe is currently rebranding to ensure independence after previously being associated with the governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) with most of its leaders holding senior positions in the cultural grouping.
The grouping was established in 2007 by the late president Bingu wa Mutharika, who also founded the DPP. Since its establishment, the cultural grouping has been holding the festival annually.
Lhomwe’s are largely concentrated in districts of Chiradzulu, Mulanje, Phalombe, Thyolo and some parts of Blantyre and Zomba.
