Esperance Nyirasafari, Minister of Sport and Culture, revealed the 2019 Umuganura Programme, which will see Rwandans celebrate accomplishments beyond agricultural harvests .
Umuganura, also known as the National Harvest Day or Thanksgiving Day, is the traditional celebration of the first harvest that was used as a platform for evaluating the harvest for that specific year and finding methods to even double attempts for the coming year.
It is celebrated on the first Friday of August .
The theme for this year is “Umuganura, the source and foundation of unity and self-reliance”.
Umuganura dates back to the moment of Gihanga Ngomijana, but it became popular during King Ruganzu Ndoli’s reign in the early years between 1510 and 1543.
With changing times and the economy not relying on agriculture alone, Umuganura has acquired wider significance, developing into a domestic festival to celebrate the accomplishments of the country in line with its vision of a more cohesive, united, peaceful and prosperous future.
Health, ICT, sports, mining, manufacturing, infrastructure, culture and tourism among others will also be celebrated this year’s celebrations.
It is also a chance to think about fresh ways to achieve sustainable development .
At the domestic level, the Umuganura festival is marked by processions and marches, parades and fashion displays, as well as a set of traditional matches.
Nyirasafari clarified in a declaration that the 2019 Umuganura celebrations will be celebrated on the domestic, county, village, family, educational equipment and in the diaspora.
“For those who won’t be able to make it to the celebrations in districts due to long distance, they can do so on the village level where their leaders can update them about the progress made and what the vision is for the future,” she said.
This year’s Umuganura falls on August 2 but before that there will be a week devoted to running the domestic main event that will be defined by entertainment from distinct traditional local singers and bands.
The domestic event is anticipated to take place in the Nyanza District of the Southern Province.
While the operations of Umuganura have been mildly tweaked over the years, the celebrations of this year are anticipated to be distinct.
“The 2019 Umuganura is special because it will be dedicated to promoting cultural factories in the country as one of the professions that can contribute to national development and employ youth employment,” she said.
Commenting on the importance of Umuganura celebrations, the President of the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission (NURC) ; retired Bishop John Rucyahana stuff like Umuganura can be credited for making the country’s forefathers who they were and should be protected for millennia to come.
“We have so many things that are currently distracting and attempting to dilute what we believe in. We need those norms protected and valued because we need them now more than ever. Umuganura was a celebration of success and life. It was a means of celebrating the oneness of the family, connecting generations to generations,” said Rucyahana.