Taita Taveta county has started the process of submitting documents to the Kenya National Commission for Unesco to have their traditional dance, Mwazindika certified as an 'Intangible Cultural Heritage'.
The process will result in the electrifying cultural dance listed for urgent safeguarding, according to Julius Mwahunga, the director of cultural heritage at Kenya National Commission for Unesco.
Speaking during a public participation exercise in Wundanyi on Wednesday, Mwahunga said the dance is among other four intangible cultural elements they are seeking certification by Unesco.
"The listing will ensure that the dance is safeguarded. We are intending to safeguard this dance for the benefit of the county and generations to come," he said in an interview.
Mwahunga said the public participation will be followed by documentation and community consent before the nomination is submitted.
The submission, he said, will be made before the end of March next year, expressing hope for a possible inscription of the much-sought-after dance by 2025.
"The commission will hold a meeting with county representatives, practitioners and bearers of the dance next week. A nomination dossier will then be formulated and submitted to Unesco for consideration," he said.
"God willing, we are sure Mwazindika dance will joining the list of certified intangible cultural heritage."
The Kenya National Commission for Unesco is a government agency mandated is promote the country’s interests in Unesco and Unesco’s international interests in Kenya, regionally and globally in the areas of education, sciences, culture, and communication and information.
If certified, Mwazindika will now join the Isukuti dance from the Luhya community, which was certified in 2014.
The listing of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity is done under the 2003 Unesco Convention.
The convention defines Intangible Cultural Heritage as the practices, representations, expressions, as well as the knowledge and skills that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognise as part of their cultural heritage.
Gonda ya Bara Isanga Cultural Dance Troupe chairperson Joseph Mwasi described the push to globally recognise the Taita dance as timely, saying it will boost the economy of the region.
He said the Mwazindika dance is deep-rooted in the community, hence the need to support the troops and pass it on to the next generation.
"This thrilling music is a traditional heritage that was passed down from our forefathers. Getting a Unesco recognition will catapult it to the next generation," Mwasi said.
Although it is played in many parts of the county, the Mwazindika dance originates from a little-known Barawa village in Bura, Mwatate constituency.
Gonda ya Bara Isanga is the leading cultural dance group in the county and has received several national recognition for its musical prowess.
Mwasi further said that recognition of the music will help preserve the community's culture thus attracting more domestic and international tourists.
