First Lady invited by UNESCO as guest of honour for its Africa Week in France

Tendai Rupapa in PARIS, France

HISTORIC interventions by First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa to restore the country’s cultural identity and heritage continue to make waves on the global stage, with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) inviting her as guest of honour for its Africa Week in Paris, France.

The UNESCO Africa Week festival is being held from May 19 to 21 and is running under the theme “Global solidarity for the Restitution and Restoration of African Heritage through Culture, Education and Sciences”.

UNESCO comprises 153 member states.

Zimbabwe has been a member since September 22, 1980.

UNESCO’s headquarters are in Paris.

This is a first-of-its-kind invitation to France extended to a sitting First Lady since independence, thanks to Amai Mnangagwa’s hard work and educational programmes.

The invitation and respect for Dr Mnangagwa to be the guest of honour also bodes well for Zimbabwe’s engagement and re-engagement policy, and helps parts of the world get snippets about Zimbabwe, its food, music, culture, people and identity.

The diversified Africa Week programme includes conferences, exhibitions and high-level presence, celebrating the cultural diversity of the African continent and highlighting the importance of education for sustainable development and innovation.

The celebrations are important because they promote understanding and respect for diverse cultures. They foster a sense of community, encourage creativity and help break down stereotypes.

By celebrating different cultures, nations can appreciate the unique values, traditions and perspectives that make the world diverse and vibrant.

On learning of the First Lady’s presence in Paris, the mayor for District 17, who keenly follows her work, immediately invited her to attend an inaugural Paris 17th International Gastronomy Festival, where Zimbabwe showcased its rich culture and heritage through food, music, dance and national fabric.

The Zimbabwe food stand was popular with international guests, whoscrambled for more as they licked nhopi and rupiza from their palms.

Firmly grounded on African principles, Dr Mnangagwa has been promoting the production and consumption of traditional dishes, which have high nutritional value and medicinal properties, earning her recognition, with the country being the first to host the first UN Tourism Forum on Gastronomy in Africa in July last year.

She has also been promoting the national dress, making Zimbabweans identify with their nation and being proud of who they are.

She conducts a popular Gota/Nhanga/Ixhiba Programme, where she teaches children of various age groups the importance of good morals and respect for culture, which has in-built mechanisms to deal with social ills.

Yesterday, Dr Mnangagwa toured food exhibition stands mounted by many countries, accompanied by Deputy Mayor Mr Jean-Didier Berthault.

Countries represented at the gastronomy festival include Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Morocco, Haiti, the Philippines, Lithuania, Peru, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Italy and Brazil.

The First Lady said Zimbabwe gave guests to the gastronomy festival an experience to remember.

“This is a first-of-its-kind visit for the Culture Month, and we are celebrating Africa here in France. We have seen so many countries that are showcasing their dressing, their dances and their food, and Zimbabwe we were among them,” the First Lady said.

“I want to thank the Mayor of this district, which hosts our embassy, for inviting us to this festival upon hearing that I was around for the UNESCO culture week. I have been to many exhibition stands and I have tasted food, including French food, which is good for us Africans to know what other countries have. I was invited by UNESCO to come and showcase what Zimbabwe really is and all about when it comes to culture and heritage. They want to learn more about Zimbabwe, so we are showcasing.”

In response, Mr Berthault said it was a great honour to have the First Lady of Zimbabwe at the district’s inaugural event.

“This is the first year that we have organised this event here and we have more than 20 countries.  We tasted your gastronomy, which is very, very tasty and we appreciate, and we intend to share it with everybody, and it’s important to connect with many people and countries,” he said.

“Food and music connect people. We follow the First Lady’s works with keen interest, and she is doing amazing work in promoting gastronomy tourism; that is why we invited her here so that we also learn from her.”

Guests from all walks of life were left asking for more on the Zimbabwe food stand, where they were treated to mouth-watering and perfectly cooked indigenous dishes in an environment where sweet mbira music, accompanied by energetic dances, stole the show.

Following her invitation to France, Amai Mnangagwa was asked to bring along a cultural musical group.

The First Lady, who is a unifier, invited artistes from different musical groups and institutions, which include traditional dance groups from the Zimbabwe Republic Police, Airforce of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Service.

They delivered a polished act.

All members of the traditional dance group were resplendent in costumes sewn with the national fabric, heightening the Zimbabwean flavour.

Amai Mnangagwa displayed remarkable skill in playing the rattles, leaving guests in awe.

Dishes that were showcased and served at the festival were prepared by chiefs’ wives and winners of Amai’s traditional cookout competitions drawn from different provinces.

The food included Haifiridzi made with tripe, nhopi (a mixture of pumpkin and peanut butter), oxtail, rupiza, road runner chicken, dried meat in peanut butter, fish, cowpea leaves mixed with nyevhe and blackjack, roundnut balls, kapenta, sweet potato crisps, chicken feet and brown rice in peanut butter.

Fruits comprised horned cucumbers, nyii, masawu and sugarcane.

For dessert, guests were spoilt for choice with sorghum salads, roasted nuts, baobab cheesecake, and brown rice with peanut butter.

Even the guests spoke highly of the mouth-watering food they had tasted on the Zimbabwe stand.

“I have been tasting nhopi; it’s very nice, very sweet and delicious. It is my first time tasting nhopi,” quipped Mrs Clotilde Dirnat from France.

“I have eaten finger millet salad from Zimbabwe and it’s nice, tasty and fresh. It’s the first time to eat Zimbabwean food. My husband is from Cameroon, and we shall certainly come to Zimbabwe,” she said with delight.

Mr Esnar Czeub said he had appreciated Zimbabwean food.

“I enjoyed the indigenous nutritional food I ate on the Zimbabwe stand. I was given sumptuous worms called madora that were prepared with chilli. I just couldn’t resist the taste. I also loved the traditional beverages. It really sets the Zimbabweans apart as the best exhibitors of their culture,” he said.

Similar sentiments were echoed by Mrs Billet, who said she looked forward to visiting Zimbabwe in the not-so-distant future.

“I loved the music, the dances and especially the drum. I really want to visit Zimbabwe so that I can experience first-hand some of the things that were being displayed here, including the food,” she said.

Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to France, Spain, Portugal and the Vatican Dr Sekai Nzenza spoke highly of the First Lady and her determination.

“Today is a significant day for Zimbabwe. The First Lady of Zimbabwe, Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa, started talking about our culture, heritage, our food, our clothing, everything to do with us as Zimbabweans. What we are witnessing here in France is that what the First Lady started doing in Zimbabwe has now developed wings and these wings have taken her to the centre of Paris, to the centre of Europe,” she said.

“This week we have got Africa Week at UNESCO and it represents many member states, but this week is particularly significant for Zimbabwe. The First Lady has come here to showcase what Zimbabwe has. This is also key in the realisation of the country’s engagement and re-engagement agenda. The First Lady’s work focusing on our heritage and our identity is here today being expressed in the form of our food to show the uniqueness of Zimbabwean indigenous food.”

Ambassador Nzenza said indigenous dishes are going to open avenues for Zimbabwe because what the First Lady has done is to show that Zimbabwe has got wealth in its food.

“It also opens the door for us here to say look at our clothing, our food, and in talking about our food, we are also talking about our identity as people. We are also talking about our land, what our land produces, the sun, the rain, everything that makes us who we are as Zimbabweans. Zimbabwe is a member of UNESCO,” she added.

“UNESCO represents many countries right across the world, but every year we have a special week that UNESCO dedicates to African countries. So, this year, Africa Week, the guest of honour is Her Excellency Dr Auxilia Mnangagwa. This is incredibly significant because her presence here as guest of honour positions Zimbabwe as a very outstanding country; outstanding in its food, in its people.

“It’s also a way of educating not just the Africans but also educating other international countries and people who are fascinated by Zimbabwe. This is particularly important that she is the guest of honour. But what is also really exciting is that other countries, even those from French-speaking backgrounds, didn’t know enough or much at all about Zimbabwe. So, they are also learning about Zimbabwe.”

The Zimbabwe cultural musical group later shared the stage with various artistes from other countries.

They played the traditional instruments, including mbira, ngoma nehosho, much to the delight of guests, who joined them on stage.