25 May 2023

The culinary tastes of different regions of the African continent and other parts of the world will be on offer this Saturday, thanks to the International Food Festival (IFF) themed A Global Village.

The event, billed for Protea Hotel Masa Rooftop on Saturday comes just two days after the continent commemorated Africa Day on May 25.
The Saturday event is aimed at uniting Batswana with their fellow Africans and the global community through their various palates.
Speaking in an interview with BOPA on Thursday, Sheryl Manchisi of event organiser SCMG;

"The IFF seeks to create light-hearted conversation and social interaction between Batswana, fellow Africans and the rest of the global community. We aim to achieve this through relaxed social networking over custom made menus," she said.

While seeking to promote Botswana's own culinary tradition and investment opportunities, Manchisi said the IFF aimed to provide a platform for other nations to showcase what they offer to Batswana, in the spirit of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.

Director of SCMG, Patrick McGee said as an expatriate in Botswana, he realised the need for greater interaction between locals and other cultures, to take Botswana to the world and the international community to Botswana, through food.

Ambassadors of France, the European Union, South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as well as Kenya are some of the members of the diplomatic corps expected to grace the occasion in addition to local dignitaries.

Among the custom-made dishes in the starters, mains and desert would br jolof rice, nyamachoma and shisanyama, biltong droewors with cheese, magwinya and serobe, mini phaphatha, aranchini stuffed with Seswaa, while the sauces will include chakalaka peri peri and chachandu cassava-based sauce.

In addition to a performance by the Botswana Jazz Society, Afro Beat, Kizomba, Rhumba, RnB and Soul will be among performing artistes. ENDS