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  • The Mwaka Kogwa festival in Makunduchi, July 2022 — a genuine photograph of the celebration itself.

Events Festivals & culture

Mwaka Kogwa Festival

  • Date not yet announced
  • Free entry

Posted 6 Aug 2026 15 views Makunduchi, Unguja, South, Unguja South

Mwaka Kogwa Festival is a Zanzibar recurring event associated with cultural festival, traditional celebration.

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Description

Mwaka Kogwa is the traditional Shirazi (Persian) New Year festival celebrated in the village of Makunduchi in southern Unguja. Held annually in July, its best-known ritual is a mock fight in which local men strike each other with banana-tree stalks (historically a more literal contest, now a symbolic, non-violent play-fight), accompanied by traditional singing, drumming and dancing. A ceremonial hut is built and burned as part of the celebration, symbolising the clearing away of the past year's grievances and a communal renewal for the year ahead. It is a free, public event open to visitors as well as local residents.

Details

Venue
Makunduchi
Online event
No
Admission
Free entry
Repeats
Yearly
Event status
Going ahead
Note about the status
Held annually in July. Confirm the current year's exact dates with organiser.

Location

Makunduchi, Unguja, South, Unguja South

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