{"id":49791,"date":"2022-04-14T13:27:43","date_gmt":"2022-04-14T11:27:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/mthathaexpress\/poetry-fest-hosted-in-mthatha-20220412\/"},"modified":"2025-03-20T22:06:33","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T20:06:33","slug":"poetry-fest-hosted-in-mthatha-20220412","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/mthathaexpress\/poetry-fest-hosted-in-mthatha-20220412\/","title":{"rendered":"Poetry fest hosted in Mthatha"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Praise poet and founder of Izwi LeeMbongi Arts and Cultural Festival, Mandilakhe Twazi, expressed happiness at having managed to bring the event back after a two-year hiatus, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This comes after the successful hosting of the second edition of the annual event in Mthatha on April 2. The inaugural event was hosted in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second edition of the event was hosted at the O.R. Tambo Hall in Southernwood, Mthatha, with internationally renowned praise poet, Zolani Mkiva, among those in attendance as a guest speaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The poetry festival attracted praise poets from as far afield as Bloemfontein and Twazi could not be happier at the growth of his brainchild.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe idea behind this poetry competition is to preserve the art of praise poetry and use this platform as a tool to unearth and groom other upcoming praise poets from around the country and beyond,\u201d Twazi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He further said it was his intention to grow the annual event into a global showpiece that could attract praise poets from around the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy wish is to see this initiative growing annually and becoming an international event that attracts international praise poets. I also want it to be self-sustainable so that it continues even if I am no longer around,\u201d Twazi added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He further thanked praise poets who contributed to the successful hosting of the event by sharing their ideas and wisdom during the organising stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The top five performing poets from the event were rewarded with a certificate and cash prizes between R1 000 and R5 000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Twazi said he planned to host another talent showcase event called Masikhule Youth Talent Show which is targeted for the youth on June 16.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The second annual Izwi LeeMbongi Arts and Cultural Festival was made possible through funding Twazi, secured from the Eastern Cape Department of Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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fest hosted in Mthatha | Mthatha Express<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/mthathaexpress\/poetry-fest-hosted-in-mthatha-20220412\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Poetry fest hosted in Mthatha\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Praise poet and founder of Izwi LeeMbongi Arts and Cultural Festival, Mandilakhe Twazi, expressed happiness at having managed to bring the event back after a two-year hiatus, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/mthathaexpress\/poetry-fest-hosted-in-mthatha-20220412\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mthatha Express\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" 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