Online Reporter
Blessing Ticha Karubwa Online Writer
TRADITIONAL leaders in Matabeleland are looking to China’s experience in preserving and commercialising cultural heritage for lessons that could help turn local traditions and indigenous products into sustainable industries.
Chief Dakamela of Nkayi and Ntando Ndlovu founder Ntando Ndlovu kaSibasa are in Beijing, China, attending a two-week seminar on the conservation and inheritance of cultural heritage for countries along the Belt and Road Initiative.
Speaking in a telephone interview from China, Chief Dakamela said the engagement was not only about learning how China preserves its heritage, but also how it has turned cultural assets into economic opportunities.
“We are here not only to learn how they conserve their heritage, but also to learn how they have managed to turn heritage into industries that sustain communities,” Chief Dakamela said.
Hosted by the China Academy of Cultural Heritage, the seminar brings together 30 representatives from different countries and includes lessons and visits to major heritage sites such as the Great Wall of China and the Palace Museum.
Chief Dakamela said China’s porcelain and ceramics industries had particularly provided lessons on how traditional cultural practices can be developed into commercially viable enterprises.
“What is interesting for us is that they have managed to take something that is part of their culture and heritage and develop it into a major industry,” he said.
He said similar opportunities existed within Dakamela Traditional Authority through products and practices such as iMvunulo, iLala products and clay products.
“We are looking at our own products and asking ourselves how we can develop these into heritage industries without losing their cultural meaning,” he said.
Chief Dakamela said the ultimate goal was to ensure heritage preservation also contributed to livelihoods and community development.
“We don’t want heritage to remain something that we only talk about or keep in museums. We want to see how it can also contribute to livelihoods and economic opportunities for our people,” he said.
The engagement has also provided an opportunity to showcase Zimbabwean, particularly Matabeleland, culture to an international audience.
“We have also been able to share our culture with people from different countries. They are learning about who we are, our traditions and the beauty of our culture,” Chief Dakamela said.
He said the lessons gained in China would be taken back home for possible application in Nkayi and the wider Matabeleland region.
“Our hope is that what we learn here will not end in China. We want to bring the knowledge back home and see what can be applied in our communities in Dakamela, Matabeleland and Zimbabwe,” he said.
The Dakamela Trust also thanked the China Academy of Cultural Heritage, Ambassador Zhou Ding and the Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe for facilitating the engagement, describing cultural heritage as a shared global treasure and an avenue for strengthening people-to-people cooperation.
