Africa Day Celebrations
May 26, 2010 by Brown Shuga
The Gauteng Province together with the Department of Arts and Culture will be hosting the Africa Day Celebrations in the city of Ekurhuleni on Saturday, 29 May 2010.
The planned event will feature an address by President Jacob Zuma, a cultural programme, a development soccer match and a concert featuring artists from the 6 African countries who’ve qualified to play in the upcoming FIFA World Cup™.
Entrance to the concert will be free & feature performances by Nigeria’s D’Banj, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, HHP, Teargas, Wax of Cameroon, Ntombi, Debra Fraser and Sasha Lee from South Africa, Manou Gallo of the Ivory Coast and Mak Manaka.
About Africa Day:
Africa Day is the annual commemoration of the 1963 founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), presently recognized as the Africa Union (AU). The African Union, comprised of 53 member states, has brought together the continent of Africa to collectively address the challenges it has faced, such as armed conflict, climate change, and poverty.
For those who are interested in this event but aren’t in JHB, it will be broadcast on SABC 2 from 21:00 – 23:30. I will unfortunately not be watching the event and I’m very sad about missing the Koko Master’s performance, those of you who are going… please have fun.
I’m also interested in knowing whether Africa Day means anything to you at all?
Did you go around wishing your friends a “happy Africa Day”?
How important is this African Day? Should we even have it?
And most importantly, if it’s so important then why is Africa Day not declared a public holiday in all these countries? Wouldn’t that be cool? Have a public holiday that totally unites us as a continent so we could all have these celebrations at the same time….?
Mmh…what’s your take?
martrixxx8 on Wed, 26th May 2010 2:07 am
I feel that Africa Day should be a Public Holiday as in other neighbouring countries such as Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho etc.because it will highlight the significant contribution that South Africa has played in the development of the continent and the Southern African region as a whole and also officially commemorate the founding of the Organisation for African Unity. I also think in the near future we should have a Ministry for Africa (most European Nations have a Ministry for Europe and the UK has a ministry for the Commonwealth) because this thing that it should be housed in the Department of International Relations and Cooperation is not giving it enough significance (Plus it will also afford us the opportunity to can the Ministry of Women, Children and People with Disabilities **phew**)
fabulicious on Wed, 26th May 2010 7:18 am
tjo Martrixxx8!
TeeCeeakaNthati on Wed, 26th May 2010 8:07 am
D’banj! Make yoy fall in love! I’d go crazy seeing him perform that song and Gbono feli feli! I love him! Won’t make it. Africa Day being a holiday and havin a united celebration gets my vote!
GodsBlessing on Wed, 26th May 2010 8:39 am
I dnt knw daz dis mean nathi eDurban we shal celebrate dis day on da 29?? Or jst Jhb? Coz izolo beziwa eDbn wth studentz 4rm different campusz performn dem songs. Celebratin dis day. Thou i ddnt see much….
Hlobi on Wed, 26th May 2010 9:05 am
Tjo! izolo we had our concert in Durban at the ICC Arena snd it was off the hook!
Groupie on Wed, 26th May 2010 9:25 am
As long as they make it a public holiday, am game!
Cijimpi on Wed, 26th May 2010 9:45 am
holiday..nami im game! and i shall b the Minister of Africa.. lol
Cleve2 on Wed, 26th May 2010 10:27 am
I am going to the celebrations on Saturday so yeah I will be celebrating.
We should have a holiday since we claim to have a united africa
Dladla on Wed, 26th May 2010 11:25 am
I honestly do not care about this Africa day, and I actually think if it had some importance in it it would have been made a public holiday.
Nonetheless, whether it is celebrated or whatever, it makes no difference to me.
sponono on Wed, 26th May 2010 12:12 pm
aaah and there’s Mam Yvone again..lol
ugogal on Wed, 26th May 2010 12:18 pm
I didnt know anything about it just heard it being the topic in most radio stations yesterday and I still dont get it! anyway thinking about it, I never heard anything about it in the previous years *I’m lazy to hide*
Maggs on Wed, 26th May 2010 12:37 pm
matrixx that title ka Minister ya shota its Minister of Women, Children, Youth and People with Disabilities and all of these are already done in the Social DEvelopment so i do not see the need for her Dept either. i got nothing to say about Africa Day.
poshspice on Wed, 26th May 2010 12:46 pm
This day is very important in creating awareness about the continent.
Guys, foreigners are making a lot of money in our continent, they travel to African states that we underestimate and seize opportunities. While we look down on each other, them whites are enriching themselves. hence the call to unite
First of all we need to realise that as South Africans we are not superior to other African states.
The media feeds us negative media coverage of the african continent, but those who are smart who read will tell you that Nigerians are very intelligent and most of them are doing very well in their countries despite all criminal activities they are famous for, Angolans are busy with recontructing their country and South African companies owned by whites are being recruited for construction jobs, while we are busy discriminating against each and they pay in DOLLARS!
I say, let’s wake up and conquer Africa..this tenderpreneur business anyways is shaky, you can’t rely on it..
poshspice on Wed, 26th May 2010 1:03 pm
This concept actually need to be intensified because Africans need to accept and trust each other e.g the irony that it is the very same black African Presidents who do not trust black companies, they make it clear that they want white SA companies and European companies mostly their former colonisers and give them multi-million dollar deals..
The fight is really about changing our attitudes towards each other.
Noticed how whites like travelling to African Continents while the media feed us loads of rubbish about them and we stay away from them
Also Whites are more welcoming of our other african brothers than us here because they know there is a lot to gain and that most African brothers are very smart and business minded
Another thing I’ve noted is how other African countries play and know our music Mafizolo, Malaika, late Lebo Mathosa, HHP etc, sometimes they even top their music charts yet we know nothing about them little about them…
we have too many holidays already, so am not sure about making it a holiday
Lehakoe on Wed, 26th May 2010 1:56 pm
I disagree with the public holiday thing. I don’t think that having one would make the day any more significant to the massess than it already is. I was fazed when I saw Channel O with that Africa sign and O-Africa playlist. Even then I still didn’t know what that was about.
Truth is…nobody knows anything about this day and yet year in year out the govt spends thousands on these unnecessary free concerts. Like really now, Yvonne??? Hayi man, nako ea hae e fedile. She’s made her millions now she must give abanye abantwana ichance
NthabiVD-K on Wed, 26th May 2010 3:03 pm
It shud b celebrated..as for the public holiday, don’t think so too. It’s not gonna make any difference, we have to be producive while celebrating it.