Celebrated musician and cultural icon Tay Grin has been appointed as the Malawi Tourism Ambassador under the Malawi Tourism Council (MTC), marking a significant milestone in his 20-year career.

In his acceptance speech, Tay Grin, born Limbani Kalilani, expressed deep gratitude for the role, emphasizing his longstanding commitment to promoting Malawi’s culture, music, and heritage on the global stage.

“For two decades, I have proudly waved our flag on global stages, championing our nation’s beauty. Today, this mission takes a new form, telling Malawi’s story louder and inviting the world to experience our people, landscapes, and untold stories,” he stated.

Outlining his vision as Tourism Ambassador, Tay Grin pledged to focus on key areas, including:

• Promoting Cultural Exchange – Collaborating with international artists and institutions to showcase Malawian heritage.
• Developing Sustainable Tourism – Partnering with communities and stakeholders to ensure tourism benefits both the environment and local economies.
• Showcasing Malawi’s Beauty – Working with media to highlight the country’s breathtaking landscapes, wildlife, and adventure tourism.
• Empowering Local Communities – Providing training and resources for Malawians to take ownership of tourism development.
• Fostering International Partnerships – Engaging global travel agencies and tourism boards to position Malawi as a premier destination.
• Promoting Ecotourism – Collaborating with communities, students, government, and non-governmental organizations to balance tourism with environmental conservation and community empowerment.

Tay Grin expressed appreciation to the Malawi Tourism Council and private players in the tourism sector for their trust, vowing to elevate Malawi’s profile on the international map.

“Let’s put Malawi on the map, louder, prouder, and stronger than ever before! Zikomo kwambiri!” he concluded.

His appointment is expected to inject fresh energy into Malawi’s tourism promotion efforts, leveraging his influence and global network to attract visitors and investments into the country.

In the fascinating customs of the Bayankole tribe in Uganda, marriage is viewed as a significant milestone, where families take great pride in their children’s unions.

For girls reaching the age of eight or nine, their aunts are tasked with preparing them for marital life, instilling the importance of v!rg!nity in this culturally rich society, where premarital s3x is strictly forbidden.

The Ankole people hold a unique perspective on beauty, believing that a fuller figure is desirable.

As part of the cultural tradition, young girls undergo a “fattening” process meant to enhance their attractiveness to prospective husbands.

This preparation is just one step in a series of rituals surrounding marriage, including a ceremonial period known as “Kuhingira,” where friends and family bring gifts, such as cows and food, to the bride’s family to celebrate the upcoming union.

On the wedding day, both the bride and groom’s families host elaborate feasts, marking the occasion with the slaughter of a bull at the bride’s home.

However, a critical tradition occurs before the consummation of the marriage: the bride’s aunt must first perform an intimate test of the groom’s s3xual prowess.

This rite not only assesses his potency but also serves as a learning experience for the aunt, who observes the groom’s preferences and techniques during their encounter.

Once the aunt confirms the groom’s capability, she passes this knowledge on to the bride, ensuring that she is well-equipped for her marital relations.

With her blessings, the bride is then sent to consummate the marriage, marking a pivotal moment in both her life and that of her new husband, underscoring the intricate and unique customs of this captivating tribe.

The Mapouka dance, originating from the Dabou area of Côte d’Ivoire, involves women performing intricate movements with their hips and buttocks to entertain an audience.

In Swahili culture, dance is traditionally a communal activity that fosters social bonds, though some traditional performances are designed to entertain specific audiences, including male guests.

Recently, a video of young Tanzanian girls performing a provocative version of the Mapouka dance went viral, sparking a heated debate about cultural appropriation and decency.

Critics of the Mapouka dance argue that its modern interpretations undermine the dignity of traditional practices and promote inappropriate behavior.

Supporters of the Mapouka dance view it as a vibrant expression of cultural heritage that should be preserved and appreciated for its historical significance.

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Zomba Arts Platform’s organisers say the K5 million support, which the Copyright Association of Malawi (Cosoma) has provided will, among others enable a diverse lineup of talented artists.

Its Communications Officer, Dereck Nyirenda, says these artists will include TrappyBeats, ProVoice, Merchach, and Sagonjah.

He says the support will also see a series of capacity building workshops.

According to Nyirenda, the festival, renowned for celebrating Malawi’s artistic talent, promises to be more impactful with this backing.

“Key highlights include capacity building workshops for artists aimed at skill enhancement and professional development,” says Nyirenda in a statement.

Scheduled for April 26th to 28th, the Zomba Arts Platform has since thanked COSOMA for investing in artist development and fostering growth in Malawi’s arts sector.

Copied:Times360Malawi

Muslim parents demanded the abolition of pork in all the school canteens of a Montreal suburb. The mayor of the Montreal suburb of Dorval has refused, and the town-clerk sent a note to all parents to explain why. Here’s that note:

“Muslims must understand that they have to adapt to Canada and Quebec, its customs, its traditions, its way of life, because that’s where they chose to immigrate.

“They must understand that they have to integrate and learn to live in Quebec.

“They must understand that it is for them to change their lifestyle, not  the Canadians who so generously welcomed them.

“They must understand that Canadians are neither racist nor xenophobic, they accepted many immigrants before Muslims (whereas the reverse is not true, in that Muslim states do not accept non-Muslim immigrants).

“That no more than other nations, Canadians are not willing to give up their identity, their culture.

“And if Canada is a land of welcome, it’s not the Mayor of Dorval who welcomes foreigners, but the Canadian-Quebecois people as a whole.

“Finally, they must understand that in Canada (Quebec) with its Judeo-Christian roots, Christmas trees, churches and religious festivals, religion must remain in the private domain.

The municipality of Dorval was right to refuse any concessions to Islam and Sharia.

“For Muslims who disagree with secularism and do not feel comfortable in Canada, there are 57 beautiful Muslim countries in the world, most of them under-populated and ready to receive them with open halal arms in accordance with Sharia.

“If you left your country for Canada, and not for other Muslim countries, it is because YOU have considered that life is better in Canada than elsewhere.

“Ask yourself the question, just once, “Why is it better here in Canada than where you come from?” ‘A canteen with pork’ is part of the answer.”

100 years from now will be the year 2121. By then, every single reader of this piece will be underground, our bodies having become part of the soil.

During that time, our fate in respect to paradise or hell would have been made known to us.

Meanwhile above the soil, our houses that were left behind would have become either homes for others or demolished for better structures. Our clothes would have become destroyed or rags for others and replaced by more recent trends; our cars will be on display as historical artifacts by others or recycled for more advanced technology. But for us, we will be, for the most part, never thought about by anyone again.

Think of it, how often do you think about your great grandfather? How often does your great grandmother cross your mind?. You see!

Our presence here on earth today, that presence that we make so much noise about and shed so many tears for, was preceded by countless generations before us and shall be followed by countless generations after us. Every generation that passes through this world barely finds the time to take a glance at the world, before needing to bid it farewell and handing over the baton, having not fulfilled even a fraction of their ambitions.

Our lives are, in reality, far shorter than we imagine.

In 2120, every one of us will realise from within the grave just how worthless this world actually was, and how trivial those dreams were that we centred on.

In 2120, every one of us will be wishing that we had dedicated our lives to great matters of GOD, doing His bid, and devoted ourselves to doing good deeds, particularly those that continue to benefit us after our death.

*In 2120, some reading this piece will be screaming out, but in vain:*

*“Lord return me! Give me another chance, so that I may have another opportunity to live for you ..”*

*The response to this request, however, shall be:*

*“No! and behind them is now a barrier until that Great Day.”*

In 2121, many will be in regret, saying:

*“I wish that I had prepared for life after my journey on earth.”*

Let us reappraise ourselves, for surely what happened to those we talk of, heard of and read of will surely happen to us. Let us take advantage of today while it is called *TODAY*.

Tomorrow is not yours until it comes. And keeping our faith in God is the *ONLY* way out.

I hereby humbly appeal to everyone who is touched by this message to use this opportunity to share this important message to your contacts as part of your personal preaching.

And live your life on this planet earth wisely, May the Almighty God Almighty Remember you in Jesus’ Name!

When you find them on their traditional attire, they look great while some have their bodies exposed like the women.

The Himba people in Namibia are a unique set of humans whose culture has a twist that most of people will frown upon.

The Himba are often called the Ovahimba or Omhimba people who live in the Kunene region of Namibia. If you are wondering why this tribe is strange, we can tell you one of their cultures.

They give sex for free to their guests and also they adorn newborn with bead necklaces.

As if these are not enough, the tribe lives in isolation and is wary of external contacts.

The people work hard to ensure that their beliefs and culture is not contaminated in any form by outsiders.

You can see why we are curious to know this people who have not accepted civilization.

The Himba people are predominately livestock breeders and farmers while their women are preoccupied with gathering firewood, cooking and serving meals and sourcing for freshwater.

Some of the villagers are socially inclined and very religious, reversing and worshiping their ancient gods.

Polygamy is welcome and young girls are married off at their early ages.

Though polygamy is not peculiar in Africa, it is practiced widely on the continent.

However, not taking their bath is strange. Before you are taking aback, the reason why they don’t bath with water is because of the harsh climatic situation in their region.

The Himba people lives in one of the most extreme environments; the harsh desert climate and the lack of potable water are the reasons why this tribe have difficulty getting a bath.

Their lack of bath routine doesn’t mean that they look less pretty. When you find them on their traditional attire, they look great while some have their bodies exposed like the women.

Since the taking of a bath is difficult, they make use of the red ochre on their skins and then make use of a daily smoke bath in order to maintain their hygiene.

A shouldering charcoal is dropped into a bowl filled with herbs and the smoke is allowed to ascend and the people bow over this smoking bowl and because of heat, the body perspires and helps in washing the body.

The people are friendly to strangers and visitors but will not allow any interference in their culture.

King Oyo Nyimba was a very unique child while he was young. King Nyimbo was taught how to govern over two million people as a child.

He was born on the 16th of April 1992 and became the king of the Tooro kingdom after his dad died in 1995. His dad was the 11th king of the Tooro kingdom.

Tooro kingdom is one of the four provinces in Uganda and has been existing for about 180 years.

King Oyo is regarded as one of the greatest men in the Tooro kingdom even as he is still a child. Although his powers are limited to cultural responsibilities.

He came into the palace as the 12th king of the Tooro kingdom after undergoing a series of tests and cultural rites throughout the night.

The bishop of the Anglican church was the one in charge of the crowning ceremony of King Oyo and president Museveni was also present during the ceremony.

King Oyo stated that his mother was his greatest inspiration, and he enjoyed lifting his people out of poverty. He also wants to rehabilitate the education and health sector.

A lot of leaders have been giving him financial and moral assistance which has been helping him to be successful in the Tooro kingdom.

LITTLE *Kengee Tjipo hardly knew how to walk and talk properly when her parents gave her hand in marriage to a 25-year-old man at the age of two.

Kengee, who is now four years old, is still too young to understand that she is already married and her family will be sending her off to her husband’s home once she turns six.

It is customary for Ovahimba families to arrange their daughters’ marriage at a young age and this family from Omuangete village in Kaokoland is no different.

According to her uncle, Kengee’s traditional ‘wedding ceremony’ took place at the village in 2018 and involved the slaughtering of a sheep, gifts to the bride’s family, while guests ate and drank to celebrate the union.

When The Namibian visited the family homestead recently, little Kengee was playing with other children in the dust, oblivious to what was happening in the adult world.

Kengee’s mother, *Tueripura Matundu, confirmed the marriage, saying the groom’s mother had asked for Kengee’s hand in marriage while she was still breast-feeding her.

“She [Kengee] was still being breastfed then and we accepted [the proposal],” she said, adding that Kengee’s mother-in-law is also her aunt, making Kengee and her husband cousins.

Even though Kengee is going to live with her husband from the age of six, Matundu strongly said she will not sleep in the same hut with him until she is old enough.

“Sometimes people ask my daughter [Kengee] about her husband and she starts to cry as if she understands,” recalls Tjiposa.

“Kengee will not be forced to sleep with her husband, if she does not want to,” Matundu says.

Matundu says she has no say on her daughter’s education, since she married her off and it is entirely up to her husband to decide what he wants for her.

“If a child does not want the marriage, she should not be forced because she might end up committing suicide,” Tjiposa advised.

Similarly, if the man is no longer interested in his young wife, he can leave her even after they have lived together for some time.

What the parents care about is giving the marriage a chance, and if one is not happy about it, they can leave their partner, Matundu said.

PASSED DOWN FROM GENERATIONS

There are many things that make the Ovahimba different from other Namibian tribes – their red ochre, known as ‘otjize’ and the many ancient practices they retain that have been abandoned in some countries – like arranged child marriages.

The Ovahimba are a unique, vibrant, industrious and nomadic tribe that religiously follow the traditions of their forefathers.

They are mainly found in north-western Kunene.

Loyalty to tradition is ingrained in their lives as they still practise child marriages.

When The Namibian visited the small village of Omuangete approximately 75 kilometres from Opuwo, headman Tjihenu Tjiposa explained the reason for child marriages.

“We marry the young ones with the hope that they would give us children, who will look after the livestock,” he said.

Tjiposa explained that choosing the bride is the prerogative of the groom’s parents who then initiate the negotiations.

It is up to the bride’s parents to accept or reject the proposal.

All along the groom will not know about the arrangements, only to be told after the negotiations succeed.

His parents tell him they have found him a bride and he cannot refuse or reject the arrangement. The betrothed bride can be anything between one and 14 years, or older.

After the bride’s parents accept the proposal, the bride continues staying in her father’s household while growing up, Tjiposa explained.

GIVEN NO CHOICE

When the time to take the child bride away comes, a traditional wedding is performed at her father’s house where a send-off feast is held and another one to welcome her at the groom’s house.

Tjiposa said a girl can be married off to older men with no specific age limit.

As the bride continues staying with her parents, the groom must build a home so that when she is old enough to go to her husband’s home, usually around the age of 14, they would already have a home to raise their children.

The headman said some girls reject this practice because they are not interested in the man or they feel they are too young to get married.

“If she doesn’t want the marriage, we persuade her to go back and try again, until she finds interest in him. If she does not find interest after we have insisted on her going back, we then accept her decision and she can return home,” Tjiposa explained.

He said the biggest sign of disrespect a child can give her parents is disobeying them, which is why it is hard to take no for an answer from their children on marriage.

Ovahimba marriages have their own warts.

Tjiposa says if a man fails to make his wife pregnant, she can secretly get another man and the community looks the other way.

Her husband becomes the father of the children, even if he knows they are not his. The biological father will never claim those children because he fathered them with someone’s wife.

An elderly woman, Katjiremua Tjikundi, opened up about child marriages among the Ovahimba.

She said she also got married young, although she could not remember her age then. All she knows is that she was married off to an older man and has lived with him since.

She says parents can tell a pregnant woman, usually a relative or someone they like that if she gives birth to a baby girl, they would want her for their son.

If the pregnant woman and her husband accept the proposal, and she gives birth to a girl, the groom’s parents send congratulatory gifts as they are now in-laws.

If both sides agree to perform the marriage ceremony while the bride is still a toddler as in the case of Kengee, her mother wears the traditional wedding attire on behalf of her daughter.

And if a young bride rejects her father’s marriage offer, he disowns her.

Another child bride, *Karii Tjitemba, got married when she was 11 and went to her husband at 14.

Tjitemba says she did not like marrying an older man, but her parents talked her into giving it a chance, and she gave in.

A girl starts sleeping with her husband at 16 years after she has her first period. Even if she reaches the age to engage in sexual intercourse, she still has the right to say no, said Tjitemba.

RUNNING AWAY  FROM HOME

* Rirua Tjimbingue (17) is one of the girls who rejected an arranged marriage by running away from home.

Tjimbingue does not know when she was married off, but the first time she was told she was married to a man in his 30s, she was 10 years old.

“I was shocked when I was told that I was married, and everyone at home told me it is our tradition,” Tjimbingue said, adding that when her parents told her to go to her husband’s home she refused.

“The man is big, he is older, which is why I decided not to live with him. I did not even love him,” she said.

When her parents heard of her rejection of the marriage, she says they tried forcing her to go but she refused.

Toromba then got fed up and fled to relatives at another village. Her parents looked for her in vain and she only returned when they stopped looking for her.

NOT WELL RESEARCHED

The regional councillor for Kunene, Weich Mupya, says he has known about child marriage since he was very young.

He, however, cannot remember when the last child marriage was arranged in his family.

“I heard that it is happening but I did not make any effort to find out if it is really happening,” Mupya said.

He said child marriage in the region has not been researched because it is not a matter of public interest and that people react to the outcry of the community for action to take place.

The councillor further claimed that the outcry over child marriages are foreign and not from the people of the region.

“Community members are not complaining about this thing, but if they start complaining, we will see how to solve it, if we know it is really a problem,” Mupya said.

Mupya said there is not enough evidence for the police to investigate the practice and that people should seek help from traditional authorities, the gender ministry or regional council and many organisations, on child marriages.

He advise people with knowledge on child marriage to speak up, so this issue can be tackled.

The investigator at the Ministry of Safety and Security’s Gender-Based Violence Protection Sub Division in Kunene region, Rebecca Thomas, said they are aware of child marriages among the Ovahimba, even if there has been no official report for the past three years she has been at the division.

According to Thomas, children are willing to report if they are married at a young age, but they fear getting their parents arrested.

Thomas said to curb this practice, people need to be educated.

“We have to go around the villages teaching the community about GBV, child marriages and the consequences of child marriages,” Thomas said.

According to the Ministry of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare National Formative Study on Child Marriage, child marriage is a global problem with more than one in every three girls getting married before the age of 15.

The report states that the legal age for marriage in Namibia is 18 years, and the main drivers of child marriage is poverty, culture and tradition, teenage pregnancy and lack of educational opportunities.

“From the NDHS 2013 data, the prevalence of child marriage among women in Namibia is 18,4%, while that for males was 4,1%. The highest prevalence of child marriage among women was reported in the Kavango regions (39,7%), while Kunene (24%), Zambezi (23,8%), Omaheke (23%) and Otjozondjupa (22,6%) also recorded high levels.

“The least prevalence was reported in the Oshana region (7%). There are more child marriages in rural areas (22%) than in urban areas (15%),” the report says.

The ministry plans eradicating child marriages by mobilising the community and conducting periodic countrywide education campaigns, enhancing children’s education particularly for the girl child.

The ministry also intends to strengthen the provision of social grants to poor and vulnerable people, including child state grants.

* Not their real names.

* This story was produced with funding from the Google Grant

Burial In Rural East Africa- Maasai Tribe Leave Remains To Predators

The Maasai people have their own ideas about burial rights. Their funerals are entirely without ceremony…..

The Maasai people have their own ideas about burial rights. Their funerals are entirely without ceremony, so the dead are left out for scavengers to feed on. Any dead body not picked up by scavengers is considered a bad omen so the families often coat the body in blood or fat to make it more enticing.

Actual burial is reserved for chiefs as a sign of respect, while the commoners are simply left outdoors for predators. The Maasai believe that dead bodies are harmful to the earth and that when you are dead, you are simply gone. There is no after life.

                                            Vultures scavenging on a dead corpse

The Maasai people believe that immortality is achieved when leaving behind a family whose very existence stems from a life that has been dedicated to care and attention. To leave no successors is to face oblivion in the fullest sense, and it may be taken as a sign of having been cursed.

The Maasai are a nomadic tribe located in Kenya and northern Tanzania. They are one of the better known African tribes, numbering over a million in population. They live close to many East African game parks and offer visits to tourists.

Though there is an increasing number of Christians and Muslims in the Maasai population, it is feared that the practice will continue for as long as traditionalists dominate the Maasai population.

There are some strange attachments to some African cultures. The African peoples custom and culture consistently have its method for making stun and amazements to individuals of the outside world as well as without a doubt to Africans themselves.

One of such strange practices is being brought to the limelight right now. We investigate a Tribe in Uganda the “Banyankole Tribe”.

The Banyankole clan possesses a minority position in the clans of Uganda, however its association with the word Marriage have brought it into extraordinary acknowledgment of the western world. It’s entertaining to state that at whatever point “marriage” is referenced, it is certainly a weight on the bride’s auntie.

This is so in light of the fact that Whenever a couple is going to get hitched, the custom of the Banyankole Tribe directs that, and I quote:

“The auntie of the lady of the bride first have sex with the husband to be to guarantee that he is strong” (in other words in clear terms, that the Aunty of the lady that is going to get hitched will initially engage in sexual relations with the Man that is going to get hitched to her!!!. To affirm if the man can perform.

Furthermore, it doesn’t end there, as the auntie despite everything need to test the Bride to affirm her Virginity!!. Now and again, the custom demand that it was the obligation of the auntie to demonstrate the intensity of the husband to be by watching them make love.

Source:face2faceafrica

Located among the bush covered hills on the eastern side of the Omo Valley in southern Ethiopia, the Hamar tribe have unique culture and customs, one of them being a cattle-jumping ceremony where the beatings of the women take place.

The ceremony starts with all the female relatives performing a dance, during which they offer themselves as subjects to be whipped by men who have recently been initiated.

The beatings go on until their backs turn bloody. During the beatings, women are not allowed to scream. They do not also flee the ceremony but rather beg the men to beat them over and over again.

The women accept these beatings to show their love and support of the initiate, and their scars give them a right to demand his help in time of need.

The man must subsequently leap across 15 cows in order to be allowed to marry and once that is achieved a celebration is held to end the ceremony.

Women in the Hamar tribe are subject to beatings even after the ceremony at any time the man pleases unless they give birth to at least two children.

The rules of the tribe also say that men do not need to explain why they are beating the women as they can do so as and when they feel is right.

This has created deep scars at the backs of the women which they proudly show off as beautiful.

In spite of these, women in the Hamar tribe are expected to be strong like the men and are supposed to do all household chores, take care of the children and sow crops as well as keep the cattle.

Hamar men can also marry more than one woman, but the women who are not first wives are treated more like slaves as they do a majority of the work.

A pregnant woman in the United States of America has been shot dead by a gunman who was driving a car.

She was on a party bus outside the Milwaukee venue when the incident happened.

The woman identified as Annie Sandifer was rushed to hospital after being shot at 5 or 6 times, the Times Magazine has reported.

She was pronounced dead at the St Joseph Ascension Hospital.

Doctors, however, managed to deliver her baby through cesarean section.

It was delivered prematurely, reportrs indicate.

Relatives of the woman reacted with shock to the grim development.

“She did everything as a mother should,” said her cousin, Kisha Ducksworth as quoted by the Washington Post. “She went out of her way for her kids,” she added.

Law enforcement officers say that they are yet to arrest the culprit let alone establish the motive of the shooting.

A manhunt has been launched.

Friends and relatives held a candle-lit vigil in honour of Annie Sandifer.

The grim development comes as America grapples with the vexed issue of mass shootings.

Americans strongly disagree on how to go about tackling the issue.

The strong gun lobby, the National Rifle Association (NRA) has rejected any attempts to take guns away from civilian hands.

A Birmingham Crown Court has found an evangelical pastor, Michael Oluronbi, guilty for historical sex offenses, says West Midlands Police said in a statement on Tuesday.

Oluronbi repeatedly raped and abused children and adults in his congregation for over 20 years, with help from his wife.

The self-styled prophet would ask his victim to take part in ‘spiritual bathing’, which he claimed would ‘cleanse’ them of evil spirits.

It was found during his trial, that some of his young female victims became pregnant multiple times but were taken to abortion clinics by qualified pharmacist Oluronbi, to cover up what was happening.