Major step for Kiswahili as key event held in US

Dar es Salaam. In what can be described as a major step for the expansion of Kiswahili use, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) on November 23, 2021, officially announced July 7 of each year as World Kiswahili Day.

Unesco adopted the decision at its headquarters in Paris, France, during a meeting of member countries of the organisation.

The main theme of the day’s global celebration in 2022 was centred on promoting the use of Kiswahili as a pillar of peace and prosperity, and at the same time to strengthen and celebrate cultural diversity.

Dr Filipo Lubua, who is the executive director of Global Association for the Promotion of Kiswahili (referred in its Kiswahili acronym as Chaukidu) and a lecturer at Pittsburgh University in Pennsylvania, United States, says in efforts to recognise the importance of Kiswahili in the world, his organisation organised the seventh international conference, which was held in Washington yesterday.

Elaborating more, he said Chaukidu’s goal was to promote Kiswahili across the globe and strengthen relations between East African states and all Kiswahili speakers in various countries in the world, most importantly helping to give the right interpretation around Swahili culture.

He argues that the organisation was established with the view to bringing Kiswahili speakers closer irrespective of their professions in the spirit of promoting this unique language around the world and in so doing unite all Kiswahili speakers.

Dr Lubua also revealed that during the scheduled Kiswahili festivals, four special awards would be given to people and institutions that have been among those in the forefront of promoting the language.

These include Tanzania’s Union Parliament that will receive a special award for the promotion of Kiswahili, Kenyan Parliament will also receive an award for clarifying the standing rules of their House and starting to use Kiswahili in their debates.

Also, Unesco will receive an award for declaring July 7 a World Kiswahili Day. Another award will go to Prof Maulana Karenga in recognition of his great efforts towards spreading Kiswahili and the African community.Prof Karenga is internationally known as the creator of Kwanzaa, an African-American and Pan-African holiday celebrated by the African community spread out on every continent.

He is the author of the authoritative book on the subject Kwanzaa: ‘A Celebration of Family, Community and Culture’ and lectures regularly and extensively on the vision and values of Kwanzaa, especially the Nguzo Saba (The Seven Principles), in various national and international venues.

In this seventh international conference organised by Chaukidu, famous people were to present topics.

These include Prof Alamin Mazrui, Prof Karenga and Mr Abdulatif Abdallah, according to Dr Lubua.

In addition, he said the conference was to be different from the previous six because it attracted many participants this time around, most of them traveling from East Africa, especially from Tanzania and Kenya. Also, the presence of Prof Karenga was to bring a unique flavour to the event.

Sharing his insights towards global expansion of the language, Dr Lubua said there is more awareness now regarding the use of Kiswahili and more people keep learning the language, a move that has helped to shape and create more understanding about the Kiswahili culture and origins.

He said, it is thanks to many institutions, including Chaukidu that these achievements have been registered. Specifically, he said Chaukidu was established after many years of preparations, long discussions among Kiswahili lovers from different parts of the world, who were all eager to see the establishment of a community of people who will be ready to sacrifice themselves in collaboration with other institutions and communities to develop and promote Kiswahili in all fields to bring it respect inside and outside Africa.Chaukidu was launched and its constitution adopted at a meeting held at the University of Wisconsin on April 26, 2012. And in April, 2015 this international conference was officially launched for the first time in Washington, DC. Currently, Dr Lubua said, the headquarters of Chaukidu are based at the University of Georgia, in the US, where the current president lives and works, until he retires or his term ends.

The association was founded with the aim of encouraging and accelerating the development of Kiswahili throughout the world.

In this year’s Chaukidu conference, the official guest was expected to be the United Republic of Tanzania’s ambassador to the United States, Ms Elsie Kanza.

Among participants will be representatives of Tanzania’s National Kiswahili Council (Bakita) and Zanzibar’s Kiswahili Council (Bakiza).