Tony Okuyeme 
- It’s an avenue for cultural exchange, says Chang-ki
It was a vibrant showcase and celebration of cultural diversity as Banana Island Multicultural Festival took centre stage in Lagos.
Themed “Tour the World”, the festival, which was held penultimate Saturday in Banana Island, Lagos, to mark Nigeria 64th Independence Day, focused on highlighting the unique customs, foods, dances, and other cultural elements of the various countries and tribes.
It is aimed at creating an opportunity for residents and visitors to explore different cultures and foster understanding.
Speaking with journalists at the event, the Director of the Korean Cultural Centre Nigeria (KCCN), Kim Chang-ki, said the festival is an opportunity to promote Korean culture and create an avenue for cultural exchange between Nigeria and the other countries represented.
“It is an opportunity to promote Korean culture, like K-pop, Korean food, and K-dramas. In May, we had a K-Pop festival in Lagos. We don’t have many big events here in Lagos this year, so this Multicultural Festival is a great platform with many countries participating and many people attending.
I want to promote Korean food, and we prepared eight kinds of dishes, including Samgyetang, Jajangmyeon, Bulgogi, and Bibimbap,” said Kim Chang-ki.
For the every excited guests and visitors at the colourful and breathtaking cultural feats, it was a rare opportunity to savour the highly delicious and nutritious Korean foods such as Tteokbokki, a famous chewy Korean street food – rice cake in a dip of Gochujang sauce, green onions and eggs;
Yangnyeom, a variety of Korean fried chicken seasoned with sweet and spicy sauce of gochujang, garlic, sugar, and other spices; Japchae, Korean glass noodles dish mixed with many vegetables and meat, known for its sweetness, crunchiness and colourfulness; and Kimchi fried rice – when savoury kimchi is added to rice, a great blend is invented.
The list also included Haemul pajeon, Korean pancake made from seafood; Tuna mayo gimbab, rice wrapped in seaweed with vegetables and tuna filling; Pork Ssam gimbabb – rice wrapped in seaweed with vegetables and pork filling; Bulgogi Gimbab – rice wrapped in seaweed with vegetables and beef filling; and Bulgogi-Bulgogi – marinated slices of beef, grilled on a barbecue or on a stove-top griddle.
It was therefore, not surprising the long queues of enthusiastic at the South Korean stand waiting to savour the food. In addition to the array of food, the country also thrilled the audience with a performance by an all-female Nigerian dance group, Femmevoice, which won the K-Pop Festival 2024 Popularity Prize and also came second in the dance category.
The festival was highly competitive, with each country attempting to showcase the best of their cultural traditions.
Each booth displayed the respective countries’ national flags, food, and traditional artifacts. Visitors were invited to sample different foods and enjoy cultural performances.
