The Sunday News
BY the time you read this article, dear readers of this column, the Region 5 Youth Games will be winding up and the young sports persons from the different countries will be packing their bags in preparation for their different journeys back to their homes and different countries.
For those that won medals during the past week going home will be a suspense filled journey as they anticipate the reception their different countries will give them.
Some of the medal winners, on returning to their countries, will be praised; some will receive extra incentives from their governments, while others will be instant national heroes; their lives changed permanently.
For those who failed to bag any medal the disappointment will soon fade away and in its place a new hope will emerge. It will be back to serious training in the hope of winning in future events for many, if not all of them.
And as the games wind up it is our sincere hope that the more than 2000 visitors that came for the Games will take home more than just their sporting experience. It is our hope that during their stay in Bulawayo they were able to experience Zimbabwean culture in its totality and will take with them some pieces of their Zimbabwean experience back to their countries.
Bulawayo as the host city benefited from infrastructure development. Places like Hillside College, Bulawayo Polytechnic, City Pool Swimming Pool, Large City Hall, White City and Barbourfields stadia got serious facelifts. The only sad part for us is that out of the thirteen youth centres in Bulawayo that are all falling apart none got a facelift.
None benefited from the youth games. We believe youths were supposed to benefit more from the legacy of the games. Obviously an opportunity lost.
Also as we celebrate the successful hosting of the Games as artistes and the arts sector we need to look seriously at how the arts complemented the Games.
Did artistes benefit from the hosting of the Games? If so how did they benefit? Were there any artistic venues that were renovated for the Games that will benefit the arts sector in the coming years? Was there any cultural legacy left for Bulawayo by these Games? We know for starters that artistes impressed during the official opening ceremony where they put up a scintillating display at Barbourfields Stadium.
Their display not only impressed people in the stadiums but those watching at home as well. The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture, who was also the co-director of ceremonies during the Games launch believes the opening ceremony was one of the best in the history of the Games! Thumbs up to the artistes. Visual artists also worked on a wonderful mural that had many people talking about.
However, we still feel we missed a great opportunity to showcase Bulawayo and its cultural life to the visitors. What arts and culture programs or activities, outside the official opening and closing ceremonies, did artistes in Bulawayo organise to run parallel to the Games? Was there any plan to have anything cultural or artistic outside the Games themselves? Sadly, there is nothing worth talking about except the usual nightclub scene.
The Games were a great opportunity that went begging. Perhaps a “gala” targeting youths would have made sense. Organised by the arts and culture committee the gala or small concerts would have taken place at venues like City Hall Car Park or Stanley Hall in Makokoba or any of the youth centres in Bulawayo, places easily accessible to youths.
This gala or small concert could have pushed messages of positive recreation to the youths. The concerts or cultural events could also have been used to preach President Mugabe’s anti-drug message.
Unfortunately, as the young athletes from the different countries pack their bags ready to bid us farewell we sit down to mourn another lost chance for arts and culture. And as we mourn we wonder where we missed it.
Did we have the right people representing arts and culture in the Games committee? Visionary people that were prepared to scream and fight for lasting benefits for the sector or we had individuals who were just happy to be part of the Games, regardless of what happened to artistes and the arts sector?
Where exactly did we miss it? This, dear readers, is the question we leave you chewing at for this week.
