Concert Set to Celebrate Wellington's Cultural Diversity

This Saturday (17 September) will see an exciting celebration of Wellington’s diversity with a full day concert showcasing performances from many cultures including Thai dancing, African drumming and Chinese lion dancing. The Multi-Cultural Concert: Treasuring Diversity will take place from 10am-3pm at Wellington Town Hall.

Organised by The Multi-Cultural Council of Wellington in conjunction with the Festivale of Carnivale, the concert aims to add some ethnic flair to the festivities surrounding the World Cup. It aims to celebrate the cultural diversity inherent in New Zealand and showcase it to Wellington residents and the many visitors in the region from around the world.

The program starts with a series of speeches led by Mayor of Wellington Celia Wade-Brown, followed by a wide variety of performances exhibiting the finest of local and international talents. Previous events have been extremely successful with a similar festival held in August 2009 attended by over 4,000 people from around the country.

This year the organisers are working very closely with Wellington City Council and have the support of other organizations such as the Pelorus Trust, the Lion Foundation and the Endeavour Trust as well as key community heads.

Mohamud Mohamed, President The Multi-Cultural Council of Wellington said, “We are confident that the strong support from Wellington City Council and other local organisations, the great line up and the timing of the concert, will make the “Multi-Cultural Concert: Treasuring Diversity” a bigger success than ever.”

Communities in attendance at the event include those from areas affected by the famine in the Horn of Africa, such as Somalia. UNICEF (UN Children’s Fund) volunteers will be collecting cash donations at the event for children affected by the Famine. Dennis McKinlay, Executive Director of UNICEF NZ said, “We are delighted to be working in partnership with The Multi-Cultural Council of Wellington to raise funds for the millions of children who are suffering in Africa.

“Right now, a child is dying of hunger in Somalia every six minutes and UNICEF urgently requires donations for our life-saving work. Treasuring Diversity is a fantastic example of how local communities, with their roots in many different parts of the world, can join together to celebrate our cultural diversity whilst remembering those in other global communities who have nothing.”

UNICEF is the single largest agency delivering therapeutic and supplementary nutrition services in Somalia and has 800 feeding centres across the country. One packet of therapeutic food costs just 70 cents, and donations given by the public at the event will help feed and save children suffering from severe malnutrition.