By Staff Writer
Lake October Festival, a music festival which is held annually in Masvingo, is set to raise cancer awareness in the town.
The festival organizers partnered with the Cancer Association of Zimbabwe in this year’s 3rd edition, making it a unique festival with a purpose, Head of Public Relations Tavita Natasha Mpala reavealed.
The Cancer Association of Zimbabwe (Cancer Centre) is a non-profit making organization which was started in 1961. The Association was formed by a group of cancer survivors and volunteers in a bid to support each other morally, emotionally, spiritually and physically.
CAZ’s vision is to raise cancer awareness and improve the quality of life of cancer patients and their families.
“We are dedicated to raising awareness on breast cancer throughout the festival. Prevention and early diagnosis are the thrust of the awareness or education programs. Throughout the festivities, with the help of our various partners, we will also be sharing information on the most common cancers in Zimbabwe, cancer prevention, the importance of diet and the role of changing lifestyles towards wellness and cancer,” Mpala said in an interview.
The theme for this year is: A Destination Marketing & Promotion Festival with a Purpose-Tourism for Cancer Awareness.
She added that, “The inspiration behind this theme is driven by the greater need to raise awareness about breast cancer and the month of October being breast cancer awareness month, we took a deliberate stand to be a festival with a cause, infusing the element of edutainment.”
In line with this year’s theme, the opening night of the music festival dubbed ‘Pink Friday Music Concert’ will be held on Friday 20 October 2023. The music concert will be headlined by live performances from Zimbabwe’s top female artistes Selmor Mtukudzi, Feli Nandi and DJ Liz.
Winky D will perform as a guest artist.
Annually the Festival through its various projects and activities raises funds for charity. This year the Festival is partnering with Cancer Association of Zimbabwe to raise funds and donations for cancer patients in Masvingo.
The month of October is Breast Cancer Awareness month which is an annual event that aims to spread awareness, raise money and support for people affected by breast cancer. The theme for breast cancer awareness 2023 is “Empowering a sisterhood, healing by fostering hope, encourage to cope and survive to thrive”.
“This year’s edition of the annual Festival is an important opportunity to honor individuals and organizations that have made substantial contributions to improving the lives of people affected by cancer, through our Partnership with the Cancer Association of Zimbabwe we are excited to celebrate the courage and resilience of our community and we hope our contributions will help those affected by cancer and also raise awareness on Breast Cancer,” Mpala said.
The Festivities begin with the Lake October Charity Golf day on the 14th of October and end with a culinary competition, food and wine tasting day at Masvingo Sports Club on Saturday the 28th of October 2023. Entrance is for free and the event will also feature Masvingo’s greatest chefs as hosts.
“GRANEZ Restaurant will host this year’s edition, we are expecting participants from all over Zimbabwe and the response in terms of participants has been positive. Last year we had 8000 people who attended the festival through the 3 days,” said Mpala.
On Saturday 21 October 2023 the festival shifts to the Great Zimbabwe Monuments for the Great Zimbabwe marathon followed by a Culture day. Tambai Lakeside Park on the shores of Lake Mutirikwi will host a full day of activities that include tour of Great Zimbabwe Monuments, Lion encounter, game-drives, fun shooting, Quad biking, boat cruises, fishing, beach sports and fun activities. In the evening Zimbabwe’s top artists, Killer T, EX Q, HOLYTEN, and MBEU, will headline the ‘ZIM’S FINEST MUSIC CONCERT’ at Caravan Park Masvingo.
“We have also engaged local artists and DJs from Masvingo province to perform throughout the festival. The festival will be supported by tourism services that include accommodation, tour packages, tour of Great Zimbabwe monuments, day trips to Tugwi-Mukosi dam, and visits to Gonarezhou National Park amongst many other attractions. The festival also offers many other activities such as boat cruises, game drives and fishing,” Mpala added.