The chairperson of the Alfred Nzo Local House of Traditional Leaders, Nkosi Jongilanga Sigcau, met the ambassador of Turkey, Aysegul Kandas to discuss the possible areas of collaboration in Pretoria, recently.
According to Sigcau, Kandas had also attended the 16th annual celebrations of the Mpondo Culture and Heritage Festival, where diverse stakeholders converged on September 10 and 11, 2022, at Lwandlolubomvu Great Place in Ntabankulu. He joined thousands of amaMpondo as they celebrated their culture and heritage and in promotion of unity in a diversity of cultures through cultural exchange,” said Sigcau.
He added that this colourful event was preceded by the Mpondo reed dance, where Mpondo maidens from various parts of the kingdom were joined by their counterparts from around South Africa including the Ndebele Kingdom from Mpumalanga and Pedi maidens from Limpopo.
Sigcau said the meeting was therefore a follow-up on this interaction and to explore further on areas of cooperation. “Imperative to this engagement was to discuss possible areas to partner on that would contribute positively to rural development as well as identify opportunities.
“I gave an extensive overview of the mandate of the Alfred Nzo Local House of Traditional Leaders and a senior traditional leader in the Mpondo Kingdom while Kandas also narrated on her role as ambassador and her mandate.
“She also elaborated on the projects that the embassy is involved in, in various parts of South Africa.”
Sigcau alluded to the importance of cultural exchange. He also mentioned the need for investment in the following sectors namely, skills development, empowerment of youth, women and schools, agriculture and tourism sector and on how the embassy can work with traditional leaders in particular on rural development as a means also of job creation and poverty alleviation.
“These were received by Kandas, who expressed her commitment in contribution positively through various projects in South Africa and in learning about the different cultures of South Africa.”
According to Sigcau, the embassy of Turkey is also involved through the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) in building mobile libraries and green houses in various parts of South Africa.
He said there is also hope that some schools in the Mpondo Kingdom and in the Alfred Nzo region can also benefit in this regard.
