Cuangar – Cultural events, with dances and typical music of the region, are among the main attractions for the 120 tourists who have been participating in the Ist Edition of Raid Okavango 2024 since last Friday.
From their first stop at the source of the Cubango river, in the municipality of Tchicala Tcholohanga, in the central province of Huambo, the chapel of “Our Lady of Fátima”, in the municipality of Chinguar, as well as the source of the Kwanza river, in the municipality of Bié, the tourists were welcomed with greettings, with the best of the tradition and culture of the local people.
Dominated by the cultural warmth, tourists who favor nature observation and adventure, arrived on the same day, Friday, in the municipality of Menongue, capital of the south-eastern province of Cuando-Cubango, welcomed by the contagious rhythm of Mingole, a traditional dance that expresses female initiation phase.
Subsequently, on the 2nd and 3rd day, participants in Raid Okavango experienced more vibrant rhythms in the commune of Caiundo and in the main municipality of Cuangar, where, in addition to visiting the monument that pays homage to the victims of the 1914 Massacre, they took a tour of boat on the Cubango river.
The Raid continues its journey today to the municipality of Dirico, where a lot of adrenaline is also expected in the engines involved in this challenge, after having passed through the municipality of Calai, where the caravan of adventurers was received by administrator Adélia Muanbeno and the population.
The Cuando-Cubango director of the provincial office of Culture, Tourism, Youth and Sports, José Ezequias, said to ANGOP that the province preserves its tradition and values multiculturalism.
He highlighted that different peoples coexist in the region, including Nganguelas, Kiocos, Umbundos, Diricos, Cuangares and Tchicuacuandos, who represent different ethnolinguistic groups, but all continue and are based on a single principle: “One people, one nation”.
For today, the agenda includes a visit to the tourist attractions in the municipality of Dirico, from where they will depart for Rivungo, heading to Bico de Angola (Angola beak is a community in the southest corner of the map, bordered to the east by Zambia and to the south by Namibia).
The Raid, promoted by the National Agency for Management of the Okavango Region, with the support of the provincial governments of Huambo, Bié and Cuando-Cubango, is allowing tourists to see up close the cultural, natural and historical potential of the region, in ways to attract investors.
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