Local Culture in the National Arena: The Politics of Cultural Festivals in Ghana

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Periodical article

Title:	Local Culture in the National Arena: The Politics of Cultural Festivals in Ghana
Author:	Lentz, Carola
Year:	2001
Periodical:	African Studies Review
Volume:	44
Issue:	3
Period:	December
Pages:	47-72
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Ghana
Subjects:	traditional festivals Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups) Politics and Government
External link:	https://www.jstor.org/stable/525593
Abstract:	In Ghana, regional and local cultural festivals that recently have been created or 'modernized' provide an interface between local communities and the State. At these festivals, local political elites formulate demands on the government, and conversely, the government attempts to popularize its policies. At the same time, cultural festivals function as public arenas where local cultural identities are articulated within a framework negotiated by the State and the media. The staging of local culture thus always has a national dimension, even when the material is of local origin. Public self-representation at cultural festivals can also be an important factor in internal integration of local societies. The article examines these themes with reference to cultural festivals in northwestern Ghana which the author has observed and whose organizers and participants she has interviewed since 1989. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. in English and French. [Journal abstract]