What's a “Past is a Past”, the saying goes, but it's always worth remembering to serve as a reference for the present and to help project the future. We look back and see that Mozambique had a bittersweet 2023. This mixture of sensations is justified by events that opened some wounds and others that brought joy. For example, the death of rapper and social activist Azagaia was a moment that moved Mozambicans and united the artistic community from Mozambique to abroad, with fans, colleagues and friends of the artist holding events in his honor. One moment of celebration that marked the national agenda was the return of the Azgo Festival, after a three-year hiatus. Azgo is probably the most important music event in Mozambique, taking place over three days.
Below, we've listed the events that we think were worth having, at least in terms of their importance for the creative field, the promotion of the arts, exchange, the sustainability of the industry and the creation of new opportunities and cultural dynamics.
1 - Death of Azagaia
Azagaia passed away on March 9, 2023. Edson da Luz, better known by his stage name Azagaia, was a Mozambican hip-hop singer known for his social intervention music.
2 - Azgo Festival
After a three-year hiatus, Mozambique's biggest music festival has returned. The AZGO festival took place in Maputo in May, bringing together various national and international artists.
3 - Cultural and Creative Industries Awards
On March 30, the Mozambican government, through the Ministry of Culture and Tourism - MICULTUR, held a gala in Maputo to award the Cultural and Creative Industries Prize - PREICC. The award is intended to distinguish established and emerging Mozambican artists, living in the country or abroad, who have distinguished themselves over a two-year period in raising the profile of Mozambican culture. The first edition included Paulina Chiziane (Career Award), Banda Marrove (Revelation Award), Nivaldo Therry (Fashion) and Jimmy Dludlu (Music).
4 - XI National Culture Festival
The 11th edition of the National Culture Festival took place from August 23 to 27, 2023, in Maputo Province, under the slogan "Culture, the Force that Unites the Nation Towards Development". The event is organized by the Mozambican government, and, among other things, the main aim of the festival is to preserve and develop the arts, culture and traditions of the different Mozambican communities, to create a platform for interaction and exchange and to disseminate the country's rich and diverse cultural heritage, putting it at the service of society and progress.
5 - 20 years of MUVART - Mozambique's Contemporary Art Movement
In September 2023, the exhibition "Ser Humano" celebrating MUVART's 20th anniversary was held at the Camões - Portuguese Cultural Center in Maputo. MUVART inaugurated the phase of contemporary plastic arts in Mozambique, bringing together the most important names in the field today. It held an emblematic exhibition with the best of Mozambican contemporary art.
6 - Mia Couto Literary Prize
The 400,000 MT prize honors the best book published in Mozambique in the genres of Poetry and Prose. In 2023, at a ceremony held in September, the best books of 2022 were awarded: "No Verso da Cicatriz", a novel by Bento Baloi and "Pétalas negras ou a sombra do inanimado", poetry by Belmiro Mouzinho.
7 - Kinani - Contemporary Dance Biennial
Mozambique's contemporary dance festival held its 10th edition in November and hosted the Africa Dance Biennial, making Mozambique the dance capital, bringing delegations of artists, cultural managers, festival directors and representatives of African cultural institutions and guests from other continents to Maputo.
8 - Inauguration of the Mozambique-China Cultural Center
The new cultural complex, which is located on the main campus of the Eduardo Mondlane University, is the largest cultural space in Mozambique, with three auditoriums, the largest with a capacity for 1500 people and the smallest with a capacity for 400 people. It has state-of-the-art equipment to host top events. One of the landmark events that the Mozambique-China Cultural Center hosted in 2023 was the musical "Those Radio Days".
