RUZAIK FAROOK
COLOMBO — South Africa embassy in Colombo Celebrated Heritage Day on Friday September 25 at the embassy premises. It was held under the patronage of High Commissioner of South Africa Sandile Edwin Schalk.
On 24 September, South Africa celebrated Heritage Day under the theme “Celebrating Our Living Heritage: Strengthening the Ties That Bind Us”, highlighting the importance of communities as custodians of heritage and the role of cultural practices, knowledge and traditions in fostering unity and mutual understanding of other cultures.
Heritage Day is one of South Africa’s most important national days in terms of building the nation and consolidating its national identity as one of unity within diversity.
Since the advent of democracy, South Africa has recognized the diverse cultural heritage and embraced all the cultures in the country by bringing people together and encourage unity. The country did so because its leadership knew that the country’s rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help build the nation.
The day exists particularly because South Africa has twelve official languages and an extraordinary range of cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and traditions that are rooted in dignity, equality, non-racialism, non-sexism and Ubuntu. Today, 25 September 2026, the South African High Commission is celebrating the rich history of culture and heritage through indigenous food, music, dance and colourful traditional attires that symbolises our traditions and origins of national unity and cultural pride.
