BY DELISA THWALA
MBABANE– The cheerful, friendly emaSwati women, ‘Bobhejane’, are already gearing up for this year’s Buganu festival.
The Marula season usually begins each year in mid-February and continues until May, bringing with it a celebration of the harvest of the marula fruit.
The 2022 Marula Festival took place from March 18 to 22, 2022 at the Buhleni Royal Residence and from April 1 to 3 2022 at the Hlane Royal Residence.
Once the green fruits fall to the ground, women and children gather and store them until they ripen to a creamy yellow color. The fruits are then placed into water, sugar is added and it is fermented and distilled into a beer. This potent alcoholic mixture is called marula beer or buganu.
The energy and mandate remains the same this year, even though the official dates have not been announced yet women in the country are already gearing up for the festival.
Some of the women spoken to said they were looking forward to the festival and have already started preparing for it.
“My business of renting out attires is already dusted up and waiting for their majesties to announce the dates,” said Sonto Mkhabela from Kukhanyeni Inkhundla.
Another from Nyakeni mentioned that some marula fruits had started ripening and they were already collecting them and making Buganu, Jam, and special oils for sale.
Worth noting is that the Kingdom of Eswatini celebrates the start of the Marula season with the annual Buganu festival.
The festival is increasing in popularity, and swiftly becoming one of the country’s most exciting traditional ceremonies. Each year King Mswati III and Her Majesty the Indlovukazi, the Queen Mother, make their way to various regions of the Kingdom to celebrate the beginning of the Marula Season.
The largest of these festivals is held at the royal residence at Ebuhleni where the royal family joins the nation in song and dance.
Although the Marula Fruit is found widely throughout Africa, it is most popular in Eswatini. Seen by the Swati nation as much more than a food source, the Marula is rather regarded as a magical healing ingredient, with huge fertility properties.
The King and Queen mother are presented with Marula gifts and some Marula beer from each household. Only after the royal family has had some of the beer, is the rest of the nation permitted to join in and drink as well.
