Earthy sounds and crocodile steaks with plantains African-Oriental cultural festival is underway in Bonn

Bonn · The African-Oriental festival with presentations, workshops, concerts and a bazaar is taking place in Bonn city centre for the fourth time. This year the festival will also be located on the Münsterplatz.

Visitors to the African-Oriental festivalin Bonn can hear it from far away. Drum beats reverberate across Bottlerplatz and Friedensplatz. Saliou Mbaye is kneeling beside a drum and demonstrating the different drumming techniques. Some tones sound light, others are duller. Two women are watching with their children.

Mbaye beckons them over to try out the drum for themselves. At his stall on Bottlerplatz, Mbaye is selling instruments from Senegal and the Ivory Coast. “We also have drums from Ghana, they sound earthier”, he explains and presents a small drum. To demonstrate the difference, he beats a rhythm on both instruments.

Mbaye is one of around 50 exhibitors at the African-Oriental bazaar, offering handicrafts, clothing and culinary delights from Africa as part of the festival. There are a total of 35 African countries represented at the market, which stretches from Friedensplatz over Bottlerplatz and up to Münsterplatz. The festival is taking place for the fourth time and this year the motto is “Intercultural encounters open up worlds”. There is also something new this year - Münsterplatz is providing an additional location for the popular festival.

The centrepiece is a cultural tent located here, in which presentations, workshops and discussions will be held on topics such as migration and integration, racism and de-radicalisation. “We are trying to use the festival to build bridges and to provide an explanation of Middle Eastern and African cultures, says the organisor Fouad El Hasnaoui from the association “Vielfalt verbindet” (diversity joins). Cooperating partners are this year the NRW Stiftung Umwelt und Entwicklung (Foundation for Environment and Development), AfroPort, Souk du Maroc, the German/Maghreb Association and Bonn City.

El Hasnaoui has been living in Bonn for seven years. He came to Germany from Morocco to study law. “I feel like a Bonner” he says. He organised the festival together with his wife, Souad El Hasnaoui. “It is a real highlight to be able to hold such a festival on the Münsterplatz” she says. As a trainer for international competence, she is presenting the contributions and running two workshops during the festival. The seminars have been taken up “surprisingly well.” Many people have registered so far, also from municipal integration associations in other towns.

The programme is rounded off with a programme of music and comedy acts on the stage at Bottlerplatz. Shortly after the opening on Friday afternoon the first guests were already sitting on the benches in front of the Beethoven statue and trying samosa, East African savoury pastries. For the brave hearted, there are crocodile steaks with plantains (cooking bananas) from Cameroon. A few metres away Driss Himoud is selling products from her home country Morocco. The pottery decorated with fish patterns come from the coastal town of Safi, the brightly colourful leather shoes are from Marrakesh. “In Morocco things are coloured using traditional methods, without additives like chromium,” explains his wife Anja Schmidt.

In past years the festival enjoyed around 35,000 visitors. This year the organisers expect up to 50,000 people over the three days. For El Hasnaoui there are also new things to discover, “I have never eaten anything from Afghanistan”, he says and points to the yellow and red pavilion: “I really want to try something”.

Programme

This Saturday the African-Oriental Bazaar is open from 10am until 11pm and on Sunday from 10am until 10pm.

Saturday

Cultural tent Münsterplatz

12pm midday: Intercultural Awareness Workshop with Souad El Hasnaoui (Registration required, costs 5 Euro).

2pm: Reading & Discussion: Every day racism – the hidden messages in well-meaning communication with Sami Omar.

4pm: Lecture & Discussion: What role does anti-Muslim racism play in society? with Maryam Khola Hübsch.

6pm: Guided tour of the exhibitions

Bottlerplatz stage

1pm: Reading performance with children’s author Michael Tonfeld

2pm: Concert Dakka Marakkschia (Moroccan Folklore).

2.15pm: official opening

3.30pm: drum workshop

5pm: Concert Dakka Marakkschia

6.30pm: Stand up-Comedy with Khalid Bounouar (RebellComedy), Amjad and Moaad.

8pm: Concert Vitamin X

Sunday

Cultural tent Münsterplatz

12pm: Intercultural Awareness Workshop with Souad El Hasnaoui (Registration required, costs 5 Euro).

2pm: Lecture & discussion: De-radicalisation and prevention measures in the context of immigration with El Hakam Sukhni.

4pm: Closing discussion: Added value and opportunities of intercultural opening processes regarding the refugee crisis and immigration.

Bottlerplatz stage

12pm: Reading performance with children’s author Michael Tonfeld

1pm: African and oriental stories

6pm: Concert AllOne.

8pm: Concert Sahara-Ban

(Original text: Sabrina Bauer / Translation: Caroline Payne)

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