Kenya Music Festival kicks off in Eldoret

 

Music festivals begin at the Moi Girls High School in Eldoret ,Uasin Gishu County

The 96th Edition of the Kenya Music Festival kicked off at Moi Girls High School, Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, as the Ministry of Education introduced key reforms this year, with age-based competition rather than education level, all geared towards identifying and nurturing artistic talents in music, dance, and elocution.

Speaking when he presided over the official opening of the festival, Uasin Gishu Governor Dr. Jonathan Chelilim pointed out that music has always been a vital component of society, dating back to when the forefathers used it as a platform for education and communication, delivering important messages to carefully chosen audiences.

The Governor, who was accompanied by Education PS Dr. Belio Kipsang and the Executive Secretary of the Festival, Janet Langat, said that talent continues to enrich our culture and provides a livelihood for many, and that is why we all have a role in supporting and nurturing talent within our communities, especially targeting our young ones.

“We are delighted to host 130,000 participants, with an estimated 22,000 visitors daily in our county during this year’s festivals, as we celebrate our culture and talent together,” he said.

“This year’s theme, “Talent Development for the Growth of the Creative Economy,” recognises that in our rapidly evolving world, creativity and innovation are the foundations of progress,” noted Dr. Chelilim.

The Governor welcomed international participants from Uganda, the United States, and Tanzania, which reflects the immense support for the competition, which is one of the largest co-curricular activities in Africa and the world, known for its unique coordination and high-quality performances.

Borrowing the wisdom of Plato, the renowned philosopher, who once said, “Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything,” Dr. Chelilim alluded to the fact that the sentiment perfectly captures the spirit of this year’s music festival, which is a testament to the country’s progressive education sector, which emphasises harnessing talent from Early Childhood Development Education to our universities.

In his remarks, Basic Education PS Dr. Belio Kipsang commended the more than 130 000 great young minds participating in the festival, ready to showcase their talents.

He affirmed that the government of Kenya is fully focused on the promotion of creative arts encompassing music, dance, dramas, films, and others, which are not only sources of entertainment but also special tools of social transformation and economic growth.

“We are aware of the president’s directive that we monetise creative arts and talents, and we are happy that through the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), which has seen CBC take root, music and dance have formed part of the learning and development of talents and creative arts,” he said.

The Education PS underscored that the government recognises the immense potential of the creative sector and will invest in state-of-the-art cultural facilities such as halls and others, working together with development partners to establish various facilities like stereos and auditoriums across the country to support creative arts by enabling children to be able to exploit their talents. 

Kenya Music Festival National Executive Committee Chairman Prof. Fredrick Ngala thanked the Basic Education PS for good leadership of the festival and giving directions on what and how the festival should be managed.

He highlighted key reforms that will improve the experience of the national festivals in 2024, which include internationalisation, the introduction of the national music festival conference, which for the first time in 96 years takes place alongside the national festival in order to address performance issues, the use of technology in music, and others.

Other reforms are the exhibition of traditional music instruments, the revocation of the three-year national adjudication rule, the use of ICT in the relaying of results, the monetisation of works of artistic expression, the increased participation of children with special needs, and others.

By Ekuwam Sylvester