Morija Arts & Cultural Festival, also known as Morija Festival, is an annual event held in Morija, a large village in the Maseru

Maseru

Maseru is the capital of Lesotho. It is also the capital of the Maseru District. Located on the Caledon River, bordering South Africa, Maseru is Lesotho's only sizable city, with a population of approximately 227,880 . The city was established as a police camp and assigned as the capital after the...

 District of Lesotho

Lesotho

Lesotho , officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a landlocked country and enclave, surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. It is just over in size with a population of approximately 2,067,000. Its capital and largest city is Maseru. Lesotho is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The name...

. This hugely successful event is coordinated by the Morija Museum & Archives

Morija Museum & Archives

Morija Museum & Archives, also known as Morija Museum, is located in Morija, a large village in the Maseru district of Lesotho. The museum was formally opened in 1956, and entered its present permanent facilities in 1989. The purpose of the museum is to carry on the tradition of Morija, as a centre...

, with support from many groups including, the Royal Family and the Government of Lesotho.

About the Festival

• The theme of the Morija Festival is "Kaofela re chabana sa khomo" (Unity in Diversity).

• The festival began in 1999, bringing together people of varying views and backgrounds, to celebrate the diverse cultural heritage of Lesotho. It is an opportunity for Basotho
  Basotho
  The ancestors of the Sotho people have lived in southern Africa since around the fifth century. The Sotho nation emerged from the accomplished diplomacy of Moshoeshoe I who gathered together disparate clans of Sotho–Tswana origin that had dispersed across southern Africa in the early 19th century...
  
  , of all ages and backgrounds, to demonstrate the richness of their culture and, at the same time, to experience the culture of neighbours and other residents of Lesotho.

• From 1999 until 2006 the festival was held over 5 days in the beginning of October. Recently it has been divided into two components (to prevent serious overlap with other major events in the region, which were hurting attendance figures).

• The first component is the Morija Festival Cultural Competition. This component is a medium-sized event held in October, and includes various competitions for drama, poetry, and traditional dance. These competitions are the culmination of area and district competitions for schools across the whole of Lesotho. It features competitions for Primary and High Schools, as well as Adults and Community Cultural Groups.
• The second component is the Morija Arts & Cultural Festival, a larger event held over a week in an April. This event has 3 main days, which feature artistic and performing groups, a large range of events and night concerts, as well as many stalls and exhibits.

• A major draw of the Morija Festival is the live musical performances. It is a rare opportunity to hear local jazz, vocal choirs, traditional music, and Famo
  Famo
  Famo is a type of music from Lesotho in Africa consisting of singing accompanied by the accordion, a drum and occasionally a bass. It originated in the drinking dens of migrant workers from Lesotho trying to relax after working in the mines in the 1920s but is now a popular form of music for...
  
  all in one place.

Musicians & Artists

A small selection of musicians and artists who have been featured at the festival.

Artists

• Mabeoana Quilters (Basotho quilting group)
• Matsie Sefali
• Mantsha Lekena
• Mosotho Chakela
• Kholumo Maphathe
• Famole Nkesane