The town of Janjanbureh in the central river region (CRR) will be the host to a four day national workshop on Kankurang traditions, from the 8th to 11the May, 2008.

The aims and objectives of this four day national workshop on Kankurang traditions are to document the significance of Kankurang to the communities to continue maintaining the tradition, to find ways and means of preserving and ensuring the transmission of this tradition to future generations, to lay foundations for the establishment of Kankurang centres which will serve as focal points for research, information dissemination, preservation, promotion and development.

According to the information relayed to arts and culture, from the national centre for arts and culture (NCAC), signed by Mr Momodou Joof, executive director and  custodian of the country’s tradition and cultural heritage in Banjul, stated that the workshop is a follow up to the proclamation of the Kankurang tradition as a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage of humanity under the UNESCO convention for the safe quarding of the intangible cultural heritage.

According to the NCAC boss, the Gambia and Senegal have developed a project and action plan which involves the organisation of a series of workshops with stakeholders in the respective countries with the ultimate aims of safequarding the tradition for posterity.

The dispatched information further stated that participants to the workshop are expected to be custodians of the Kankurang tradition in their communities and individuals with special knowledge on local cultural manifestations in general.