Inhebantu officially starts work Saturday
In this file photo, children learning how to peel and prepare matooke during ‘Ekigangu kya Busoga’ at Emirates Academy in Kamuli District on December 12 2017. Busoga Queen (Inhebantu) Jovia Mutesi will attend the 8th edition of the event in Mayuge District on December 2, 2023 PHOTO/CALEB OPIO
What you need to know:
- The queen will be escorted by the king when she starts executing her duties.
Busoga Queen (Inhebantu) Jovia Mutesi is expected to make her second public appearance as she officially starts royal work on December 2, following her wedding to King (Kyabazinga) William Gabula Nadiope IV on November 18.
The Inhebantu is expected to grace the Busoga youth retreat dubbed ‘Ekigangu kya Busoga’, that will be held at Rena College in her mother district of Mayuge from December 2 to 10, according to Busoga Kingdom spokesperson Andrew Ntange.
“The queen will be escorted by the king when she starts executing her duties. By gracing the retreat, she will be an example to the children,’’ he told Monitor on November 28.
Ntange notes that after a long time without a mother, children now have an opportunity to be ushered into Busoga culture by a queen for the first time, and they now expect people to believe, conduct and handle themselves as Basoga.
Ntange further explained that the queen’s participation in such activities will reduce cases of early marriage which are rampant in Busoga Sub-region.
The camp
Some of the activities that take place during the camp include cultural awareness, cultural values, and vocational skilling in projects, talent identification, and domestic work, including preparing traditional meals among others.
The retreat, which will attract children between the ages 9-18, will be held under the theme ‘Using culture to end early marriages and keep children in schools’.
The kingdom’s minister for gender, women and children’s affairs, Joyce Abaliwano, says this is the 8th edition of the retreat that kicked off in 2016 as an initiative to groom the young generation by instilling values of discipline, leadership and cultural norms.
The last retreat was organised at Victoria High School in Iganga District.
Ms Abaliwano, who is a team leader of the retreat, urged parents to bring all their sons and daughters because both sex need to be empowered.
In 2020, the Kingdom, through this retreat, launched a five-year strategic plan, highlighting the importance of using culture to end early marriages and keep girls in schools.
On December 9, 2021, Plan International Uganda, in partnership with the Busoga Kingdom, still through the retreat, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to address the violation of the rights of children, adolescents and the youth.
