Music,poetry mark German Cultural Festival 

Students gathered at the Goethe-Institut in Accra on November 15 for this year’s National German Cultural Festival and listened with rapt attention as the Programmes and Cultural Officer at the German Embassy to Ghana, Ilsa Schmidt, spoke to them on the benefits of learning the German language.

From schools in the Greater Accra, Central and Ashanti Regions, they met to express themselves competitively in German through rap, songs, poetry and dramatic sketches at the 13th edition of the festival. Some combined dance with their verbal presentations. 

The students were divided into Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced categories for their performances. Before they climb the stage, there’s always someone with a much higher grasp of the German language to inspire the young folks to take their German language studies seriously, and the lot fell on Mrs Ilsa Schmidt this year. 

Speaking fluent English interjected with some German, she said she could attest from personal experience that learning a new language could always bring immense rewards. In her view, language allows people to foster collaboration, friendship and mutual respect among themselves.

Finance, science and the arts

With German, being one of the most widely spoken languages in Europe and an important one in the world of finance, science and the arts, she felt it was important to learn it as it could open doors and create countless opportunities for both professional and personal goals. 

“We at the German embassy here believe that learning German can be fun. It enables you to become part of a community that values creativity, innovation and a deep appreciation of cultural exchange. 

“By supporting German language education, the German embassy seeks to strengthen the bonds between our two countries at the academic level, as well as deepening understanding of our cultures,” Mrs Schmidt stated.

Mr Max Rottger, Director of Goethe-Institut Ghana, also said he was extremely happy to see so many young people keen to exhibit their proficiency in the German language. He expressed appreciation to Mrs Eva Maria Asante, Head of the Language Department of Goethe-Institut Ghana for keeping the festival going for 13 editions.

He also referred to the German language teachers in Ghana as key elements in the education process, adding: “I know German can be a bit hard sometimes but gratitude must go to the teachers for always preparing the lessons and making it fun for the students to learn.”

The theme for this year’s festival was: Time Travel: Germany’s Culture and Language: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.  The students seemed happy to get on stage and they plucked up all the skills they could to attain good placements for their schools. 

Winners

Students of Bezaleel Educational Complex won first prize in the Intermediate category

A five-member panel of judges, which included Mrs Schmidt, awarded marks for proficiency in expression, general coordination in group performance and overall creativity. Three winners were declared in each of the three categories. The winning schools received book prizes. 

The University of Education, Winneba Campus came up tops in the Beginners category. They were followed by the Goethe-Institut and College St. Pierre Claver.

In the Intermediate category, Bezaleel Educational Complex were the winners. One of the emcees for the programme described them as “young and energetic souls with unending vim.” They surprised everyone around with a specially composed victory song, which they sang immediately after they were announced winners.

Robert Memorial Complex School of Accra placed second in the Intermediate category, with the University of Education, Winneba Campus picking up the third position. Goethe-Institut grabbed the top prize in the Advanced category as Opoku Ware School from Kumasi clinched the second position and Accra Academy grabbed the third slot.

Other schools that participated in the festival were Accra Wesley Girls’ High School, Christian Methodist Senior High School, School of Translators, University of Education, Adjumako Campus and UNIMAC Institute of Languages. They all got certificates for being part of the festival. 

Mrs Eva Asante said she was happy the festival went well and gave the students a thumbs up for their good performances. According to her, the impression she carried away at the end of this year’s festival was that the students seemed happy to learn German and they demonstrated that they were making good progress. 

“Putting the festival together is always an adventure. I was really happy to see teachers and learners from schools outside of Accra; I don’t often have the chance to visit them at their bases. I saw them all at the festival this year and it was very nice. We are all already looking forward to the next festival,” the Head of Language Department of Goethe-Institut Ghana said.

There were other activities apart from what was exhibited on stage. They included screening of short films, face painting, puzzles and a variety of board games.

The guest music performer this year was SVMORA, an Accra-based Ghanaian-German Afrobeats, R&B and Highlife artiste. He got many at the venue dancing to his music. Tschüss!