Afro-China Folkloric Festival: Event offers a platform for interaction and culture appreciation

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Representatives from seven African countries and Palestine have participated in the second Afro-China Folkloric Festival in Cairo. The delegations presented various traditional dance and art exhibitions, much to the delight of the audience. Yasser Hakim went along to take a look.

It was an evening of music and dancing. The Moroccan and Algerian groups got started even before the event officially began. At the opening ceremony, organizers honored several dignitaries, including renowned Egyptian archaeologist, Zahi Hawwas.

ZAHI HAWWAS EGYPTIAN ARCHAEOLOGIST "I am very happy to be here. China is a great civilization - just like Egypt. I recently met the Chinese Vice President in Luxor and we talked about how our two countries were linked thousands of years ago and are now connecting once again."

This year's festival commemorated the centenary of South African icon Nelson Mandela.

AYANDA NHLANGOTHI SOUTH AFRICAN DIRECTOR "We are very honored to accept such an award because we are inspired by our great leaders in our families and our country. Nelson Mandela always promoted strength within each other, within our families, within our countries."

Audiences were also treated to traditional Chinese dancing.

EZAT ABOU AOUF EGYPTIAN ACTOR "It's a great thing to have here especially the Afro-Chinese culture. We needed this since a very long time ago, now it's happening. So I'm very happy about it."

ANGELA TAN REPRESENTATIVE OF CHINESE DELEGATION "The performance is very good, I enjoyed it myself. We can see different cultures coming together and celebrate that. I believe our cultures can come together and connect people to appreciate different art."

This year's special guests were a Palestinian Al-Faluja group.

RAFIQ EL TAWEEL, DIRECTOR PALESTINIAN AL-FALUJA GROUP "We wanted to participate in the festival to share our Palestinian culture with the countries represented here. It's important to preserve and protect our cultural identity."

Overall, it was an enjoyable night that offered people from different cultures a chance to interact and learn more about each other. Yasser Hakim, CGTN, Cairo.