WINDHOEK-The new children’s arts organisation known as ChiNamibia Arts Education for Development has been invited to Harare, Zimbabwe by Chipawo Zimbabwe to perform at their Christmas show at an event titled “Celebrating Christmas the African way “.
The event started last Wednesday and it will end on December 17. Thirty children from the ChiNamibia and five adults left Namibia on the Last Tuesday and they are expected back in the country next Wednesday.
Their trip has been sponsored by the National Arts Council of Namibia (NACN) and the Van Rhyn Primary School. However, ChiNamibia is a body of Namibian arts educators and practitioners launched recently as an arts education for development organisation.
The initiative of the ChiNamibia was inspired by Chipawo Zimbabwe, which is part of the acclaimed international body Chipawo World.
Chipawo is a trust that has been working with children and young people using the arts for social development for over 20 years. As a result, Chipawo has facilitated the establishment and development of a number of sister organisations in neighbouring countries such as Botswana, South Africa and Zambia, and Namibia recently. This group of young innovators is made up of current and graduate students from the College of the Arts (COTA) Department of African Performing Arts. ChiNamibia is managed and administered by a committee made up of these young arts educators chaired by the organisation’s founder, Kapenangutjiua Vetira.
Some of ChiNamibia’s principal objectives are to ensure and promote knowledge of the cultural diversity of Namibia; give a platform to children to voice their opinions through arts and cultural education; and provide initiatives, bring change through the arts, media, and other child and youth friendly methodologies. ChiNamibia aims to provide initiative to inform behaviour and mindset change on issues such as health (HIV and AIDS), democracy, gender, abuse, rape, teenage pregnancies, climate change, sports, arts and as well as children rights.
The organisation has already started practicing its agenda by establishing groups and collaborating with existing groups in Katutura, where arts workshops are being conducted.
Apart from the few youth arts-based organisations such as Ombetja Yehinga Organisation (OYO) and the National Arts Extension Programme, ChiNamibia is first of its kind that takes on such a broad mission that looks into both the development of skills and education of a broad range of social problems.
By Pinehas Nakaziko