MATENDA Primary School in rural Zvishavane will represent the Midlands province in the National Traditional Dance Competition after beating nine schools in the provincial event last Friday.
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The national competition is set for Harare in two weeks’ time.
The Midlands provincial competition was held at Maglas Hall in Zvishavane as part of the Primary and Secondary Education ministry’s edutainment curriculum to uphold and preserve cultural values among young learners through dance and music.
Matenda Primary’s Mhande dance, which is popular among the Karanga people that dwell in the southern parts of the Midlands and Masvingo provinces, scooped the event for the school.
The school’s traditional dance leader and teacher, James Hakunavanhu, expressed delight that their hard work had been rewarded.
“The competition was tough this year with schools from Gokwe and Gweru performing very well, but our hard work was rewarded,” he said.
“I believe this year we will be national champions due to experience as we have been in the finals for the past three years.”
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Chief Masunda was ecstatic saying Matenda Primary’s triumph had been aided by cultural events frequently held in areas such as Matenda, Guruguru, Mabasa and Korogwe, among others, where sacred shrines still existed.
“I am really delighted,” he said.
“Matenda has done us proud. The secret behind their victory is the existence of sacred traditional shrines that include Korogwe Gorge and Guruguru Mountain, among other places, where people occasionally hold traditional ceremonies to appease the ancestors.”
The schools performed various traditional dances such as jikinya, muchongoyo, jerusarema, bira and Mbende.
