The inaugural Amatshitshi Festival brought together young women, traditional leaders, government officials and cultural representatives from across southern Africa to celebrate Ndebele culture, heritage and values passed down through generations, while creating spaces for mentorship, skills development, identity and conversations around the protection of the girl child.
Held at White City Stadium on Saturday, the festival, organised by Sigiya Ngamasiko Ethu, placed young women at the centre of a cultural gathering aimed at demonstrating the role of tradition in shaping confident, responsible and dignified young people.
The event brought together traditional chiefs and cultural leaders, visiting royalty from South Africa and Eswatini, members of Parliament, government officials and representatives from the Ministries of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture and Health and Child Care.
Former South African First Lady Nompumelelo Ntuli Zuma was also among the guests, while chiefs Fuyane of Maphisa and Bidi of Kezi called for the festival to be extended to their areas and grow into a sustained cultural movement capable of reaching more young people across Matabeleland and beyond.
On this topic
Guest of honour, Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Judith Ncube, described the inaugural festival as an important initiative at a time when young people were facing growing social pressures.
“It is a great honour for me to stand before you today here at White City Stadium as we gather to celebrate the very first Amatshitshi Cultural Festival,” Ncube said.
She commended Sigiya Ngamasiko Ethu, led by Ashley Moyo and Sheila Sibanda, for developing the programme from an initiative into a movement reaching communities across Bulawayo, Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South.
Ncube said young people were increasingly exposed to challenges such as drug and substance abuse, sexual exploitation and teenage pregnancies, making culturally rooted programmes important in helping communities respond to these challenges.
Through the Amatshitshi programme, young girls are taught to carry themselves with pride, dignity and self-respect, while also acquiring practical skills such as sewing, knitting and embroidery.
“And importantly, no child is discarded. Even those who come to this journey carrying the pain of abuse, young girls are held, supported and guided through the Amatshitshi programme,” she said.
Ncube said the involvement of government ministries was recognition that the wellbeing of the girl child could not be separated from her health, safety and future.
She also welcomed the participation of representatives from other African kingdoms, saying the preservation of African culture and heritage was a continental responsibility.
“To our young maidens gathered here today, this festival is for you. You are not just being celebrated for what you have preserved, but for the example you are setting for those who will come after you,” Ncube said.
“Culture is not something of the past. You are proof that it lives, breathes and grows through you.”
The festival also provided a platform for young women to receive messages on education, self-respect, personal responsibility and protecting themselves from exploitation and abuse.
The former South African First Lady urged the young women to prioritise their education and resist pressure to enter relationships or motherhood before they were ready.
She encouraged the maidens to preserve themselves until they reached an age where they could make responsible decisions about relationships and marriage, while warning against men who prey on young girls.
“Girls, don’t be led astray or misled. Go to school, work, don’t rush to have a child at 13 or 14,” Ntuli Zuma said.
She also spoke against harmful beliefs that encourage men to target virgins, urging communities to protect young girls from exploitation.
Ntuli Zuma drew parallels between the Amatshitshi programme and cultural maiden programmes elsewhere in the region, including the Umhlanga Reed Dance in Eswatini and KwaZulu-Natal.
She expressed hope young women from Bulawayo would one day participate in similar regional cultural celebrations.
“I look forward to hearing that there are maidens from Bulawayo represented,” she said, pledging continued support for the initiative.
Representing Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart, Councillor Aleck Ndlovu said the festival demonstrated that culture could provide young people with identity, belonging and guidance without becoming disconnected from contemporary society.
“We gather today to honour our young maidens who have chosen to embrace values of self-respect, dignity, discipline and personal responsibility,” Ndlovu said.
He stressed young people needed more than cultural ceremonies, saying they required guidance, education, mentorship, opportunities and safe spaces where they could openly discuss the challenges they face.
Ndlovu also used the occasion to highlight the abuse of the girl child, urging communities not to remain silent when children are harmed.
He said the festival could potentially provide a platform where young girls could find support and a safe space to report abuse.
“Let us not be silent when our children are being attacked,” he said.
For Sigiya Ngamasiko Ethu founders, the festival represents the culmination of a seven-year journey to preserve culture and make sure that it remains relevant to younger generations.
Moyo said the organisation was established in 2019 after she and Sibanda, who is her aunt, decided to work together to promote Ndebele culture.
“This programme wouldn’t have been possible without you. Sheila is my aunt but we love each other and decided to start this programme to uplift culture,” she said.
Moyo said they began looking beyond the present and asking what they wanted their communities and children to look like in the next decade.
“We asked ourselves that in 10 years’ time, where do we see ourselves? Where will our children be? That is why we decided to promote culture, traditional dress and food. If we die, we will know that our culture is safe,” she said.
The organisation now has branches in parts of Matabeleland North and South and the Midlands and works with traditional chiefs, whom Moyo described as custodians of culture.
She expressed gratitude for the support received from government, parents, communities and supporters from the United Kingdom and across southern Africa.
Moyo said the organisers hoped to attract a larger crowd and eventually fill White City Stadium in future editions.
“We hope for a bigger event next year and to fill the stadium. Unfortunately, transport was a challenge, but I am sure we have started on the right route,” she said.
The inaugural festival ultimately presented culture not simply as a celebration of the past, but as a tool for shaping the future.
Leave a Reply