Joniston admiring the traditional dishes.
KOTA KINABALU (Aug 27): Nine primary schools demonstrated their dedication to cultural preservation and promotion through food and performances at the Program Jaringan Budaya Warisan here on Saturday.
The programme was organised by SK Bukit Padang in collaboration with other schools within the OK9 Likas zone.
The other participating schools are SK Lok Yuk, SRK St Francis, SRK St Agnes, SK Mutiara, SK Bantayan, SK Likas, SK Kolombong.and SK Luyang.
In the event, the pupils and teachers from each school collaborated to prepare a variety of Sabah’s authentic traditional dishes, which were then put on display to give visitors a taste of the state’s distinctively flavorful cultural heritage.
In addition, teachers and students participated in a traditional dance as well as singing performance, and schoolchildren took part in a traditional garment fashion show.
These activities served to further promote the beauty of Sabah’s diverse cultural heritage.
State Assistant Minister of Tourism, Culture and Environment Datuk Joniston Bangkuai launched the ‘Program Jaringan Budaya Warisan Kita Peringkat OK9 Likas’ at the Sabah National Department for Culture and Arts complex.
He said the programme has the potential to not only help students discover their own unique cultural gifts, but also foster a deeper appreciation for and connection to their own cultural traditions.
“Through such initiatives, students will have a better opportunity to appreciate the distinctive cultures that exist in this state. This will open up their mind, and I am certain that those students who are participating in traditional performances come from a variety of different ethnic groups.
“We applaud the efforts of the educators for making this programme a success. The priceless cultural wealth is definitely represented here by the staging of traditional performances,” he said.
Joniston hoped that similar programme would be expanded to other schools as Sabah has 1,297 primary and secondary schools.