The World Music and Tourism Festival presented as a diplomatic instrument (the Governor)

Kinshasa, October 8^th, 2026 (CPA) – The World Music and Tourism Festival has been presented on Thursday in Kinshasa, in Democratic Republic of Congo, during the official opening ceremony, as an instrument of cultural diplomacy and an international showcase for promotion looking towards the future. “To choose Kinshasa is to choose a history, energy, an identity. Kinshasa is a town that defines itself through its neighbourhoods, its markets, its artists, its creators, its gastronomy, its hospitality and, above all, its exceptional popular energy. In Kinshasa, a UNESCO Creative City of Music, we do not merely listen to music; we live it, we create it and we share it with the world,” Daniel Bumba, the governor of the City-province of Kinshasa has declared. “This festival therefore takes on a dimension that goes far beyond the bounds of a show. It constitutes an instrument of cultural diplomacy and a showcase for our beloved capital. It also offers us the opportunity to convey a vital message: Kinshasa is an open, creative, welcoming city that looks to the future,” he has added. According to him, the city of Kinshasa, recognised by UNESCO as a Creative City of Music, intends to draw on Congolese rumba, registered in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, as well as on its historical, gastronomic and ecological heritage to develop its tourist potential. “The Congolese rumba, inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, is not merely a musical genre for us. It is a testimony to our ability to transform our history into creation and our creativity into a cultural influence. And it is precisely this ability that we wish to further transform into economic and social opportunities,” the governor has specified. This edition is focused on the theme: the tourism showcase of cultural diversity and a lever for promoting the destination ‘DRC, Heart of Africa’. The aim of this second edition is to bring our tourism and cultural potential to life, particularly music, to promote our country and to present the best image of what we have to offer, which is Congolese rumba. On the entertainment front at the opening, there were multidisciplinary performances, notably contemporary dance, which sums up choreographies from several cultures around the world, as well as a fashion show showcasing African attire.