Harare and Bulawayo were the places to be during the third week of last month.

The reasons being that

the Francophonie Week was going on and Harare and Bulawayo was were all the action was happening.
Normally, culture is not a very interesting subject, nor is it something the young people would readily
embrace in their ‘things to do’ list. However, this time around, it was a different issue all together.
What is the Francophonie week? I can hear you ask. The International Francophonie Day (Journée Inter-
nationale de la Francophonie) commemorates the founding of the Francophonie. It is celebrated in the
International Organisation of La Francophonie’s member states every March 20. The international Fran-
cophonie Day was created in 1998. The Day is an opportunity for francophone countries to organise
around this day (could be a day, a week, a fortnight, a month…) many cultural events. It is celebrated
almost worldwide as embassies of Francophone countries organise events on this occasion.

In Zimbabwe, the Francophonie week has been held annually for the past decade. This year, it was held in
the country’s two major cities - Harare and Bulawayo. The European Union, Alliance Française and the
embassies of France, Canada, Belgium, Romania, Algeria and the DRC were the participating Francoph-
one countries. During this week, Harare and Bulawayo cultural life was definitely lit up – an experience
never to be forgotten.

The Francophone countries definitely have a lot going on that many are not aware of. Their diverse cul-
tures are united by the same language and it all comes together in a way that is just magical. When juxta-
posed, the cultures can be compared to a coat of many colours. An exquisite beauty in diversity.

Among the so many amazing activities that were going on, I was able to go for a couple of plays, a film
screening and the singing competition. The French School and Prince Edward collaborated in a joint the-
atrical production. I enjoyed the plays because they were so intense with emotion that the atmosphere was
pregnant with feeling. French is a romantic language. Now couple that with live theatre and you obvi-
ously have overdose romance (not meaning to be cheesy). I watched ‘Le Chat du Rabbin’. A French ani-
mation production set in Algeria that had everyone doubled over in laughter every step of the way. The
cat was my favourite character – very witty it was.

Then there was the Sing Your Way To Paris Grand Finale. In my book, that was the highlight of the Fran-
cophonie week. It was held at Alliance Française where art and culture were put together in a beautiful
ensemble. Curios were being sold outside, while the singers gave us amazing performances. As we waited
for the judges to make their decision, Diamond Musica gave us the real sounds of Africa. If you were not
there for this, it was a very sad loss because Diamond Musica is amazing! They exude energy that is just
electrifying! The winner – Jane – got herself a fortnight trip to Paris! Can you believe that? Paris!

The week ended with the showing of ‘Les neiges du Kilimanjaro’. Left to the public, I am pretty sure the
culture week would have gone on for another two weeks. Unfortunately, it was not left to the public, and
a week was all we had to be content with. However short it was though, it was a magical experience all
the same. One that is worth repeating every year for as long as the Francophone countries are going to
continue giving us a glimpse of their rich heritage.

Filed Under: Culture