A NEW festival is coming to Bournemouth celebrating and raising awareness of the Igbo community of Nigeria.

The Igbo people are an ethnic group found in the southeast of the Nigeria. Its language is one of three major official languages of Nigeria with, approximately 44 million people speaking it.

Anthony Uchenna Agwagah is a member of the Igbo Community in Dorset, a non-profitable organisation which strives to promote and help Igbo people in Bournemouth and the surrounding areas.

He said: “As a group we have regular meetings on the second Sunday of every month to talk about how we can help members of our group. We look to promote our heritage and help signpost those who are new to the group to help them integrate with society.

Having started 18 months ago, the community is slowly growing and now has 37 active members.

Anthony continues: “We encourage people who want to join our community to attend meeting to introduce yourself and decide whether or not they want to join.

The event the group will be hosting is named the New Yam Festival, or Iri Ji as it is called in Igbo. It is a cultural celebration held in August symbolizing the conclusion of the harvest season. The event will be held at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Poole on Saturday August 31 from 2pm.

Sponsored by Bournemouth based businesses, the carnival will include traditional masquerade performers from London and the local Igbo Community of Dorset performing cultural dances.

Buffet-style meals will be on offer including traditional Igbo food and beverages, as well as other items. All will be covered by a small fee, with adults paying £10 and £5 for under 12s.

Anthony concluded: “We normally don’t charge anything for events like this.

“We listened to feedback from our previous events and we heard that people felt guilty for taking food and drink without paying.

“By getting them to pay a small fee, it means that people can come in and feel free to eat and drink whatever they want. Also it gives people a sense of belonging and feeling that they are part of something.”

To find out more, join the Igbo Community in Dorset Facebook page and to buy tickets, contact Anthony on 07415337192.