The 22nd Enga Cultural Show came alive with traditional hymns and diverse traditional dancing groups

by STAYCEY YALO

WABAG in the Enga Province, came alive once again for the 22nd time with various traditional hymns and diverse traditional dancing groups from all over the province for the annual Enga Cultural Show.

After the 20th Enga show two years ago, the show committee had aimed to promote purely the Enga culture which saw over 30 different groups performing traditional dances, rituals, and displaying Enga’s unique flora and fauna, customary way of life to target the preservation of Engan Culture and Identity.

Chairman of the Engan Cultural Show, Margaret Potane said Enga as a province is aiming to make sure the traditional knowledge, culture and its way of life is not lost in today’s modern culture.

Mrs Potane, who has chaired the show committee since 1994, said the show has reached its aim to promote the province’s culture where it is not only displayed every year through the show but has also been documented and will be thought as a curriculum to the school’s in the provinces.

“This is actually the second Engan show because after the 20th year two years ago, we have decided to not include other sing sing groups but only from Enga. As much as possible we want to preserve our Engan Identity where we have started to include our children in the high schools in the show.

“I’m happy to say that the entire province has taken part where our children has a chance to learn every year about their culture before western influence. We want to keep it the Engan way and the positive outcome for the show is the preservation of our culture as a province because when we first started in 1994, our costumes were scarce. As the year progressed and the show became an annual event, our people started re-producing dying our traditional costumes and revived a lot of our traditional practices which would have easily faded away. “

Mrs Potane said the Enga culture is very intact where the province has created its own cultural curriculum which was accepted by the national education Board and have been thought in schools throughout the province since last year.

The curriculum will be launched on the 16th of September this year where the province anticipates to hand pick elders from different communities in the province to teach the curriculum in the local Engan dialect to students, school by school, annually as part of the show.

The show Engan Cultural show started on Friday 12/08/16 and ended on Sunday 14th August, 2016. 

 

  

 

Source: Sunday Chronicle / Port Moresby.