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Unlike previous ones which have been in September, this year’s festival is taking place in November, from Thursday 9th to Sunday 12th, 2023.
The venue is also switched from last year’s Itanda Falls to Jinja City.
Derek Debru, one of the Nyege Nyege founders, announced at a press conference today, Tuesday, August 22, that this year’s Festival will be taking place at five closeby venues, namely; Source of the Nile Hotel; Jinja Showgrounds; Jinja Golf Course Hotel, Nile Park and Source Gardens.
The combined venue covering about 50 acres is being termed the ‘Nyege Wonderland.’
“It is gonna be a real fairytale weekend, so prepare for your senses to be ignited,” said Derek.
Accommodation at the 2023 Nyege Nyege Festival
This year’s show, Derek said, has been brought back to Jinja City because Itanda Falls was nightmarish, due to accommodation problems and venue access.
Because Itanda is far-flung (about 30km North of Jinja City), the organizers last year opted for site camping, which turned out to be a disaster.
They were forced to reimburse some of the revelers who paid hefty sums of money only to find small and poor-quality tents.
This time, Derek says, they decided not to take any chances.
“This year we figured we couldn't afford the risk of setting up our own camping ground…so we decided to go to Jinja city,” he said.
“We are now partnering with a company called Hotel Online and Uganda Hotel Owners Association. There are over 250 hotels in the city, and we are also partnering with local citizens so they can accommodate revelers in their houses and earn something.”
For those who prefer camping, Derek says, it will be available but “decentralized” at the different hotels.
The tents will be provided and set up by the hotels, and once the standards are approved by the organizers, they will be advertised on the Nyege Nyege site.
Prices
Entrance fees have been slightly reduced from last year’s, and graded for different categories of revelers.
The “Diehard” tickets will be going for UShs120,000 for the whole four days.
However, local (Jinja) residents will have their own discounted tickets, and so will Ugandan nationals, while international revelers will also have their own prices to be announced.
Aly Alibhai, the CEO of Talent Africa, says over 300 acts at five different stages have been lined up for this year’s Nyege Nyege, with performances from soon-to-be-announced Ugandan and international top artists.
The show, however, he says, will have a lot of emphasis on traditional music.
The organizers have also invited officials from top Music companies like Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube, and TikTok to meet and interact with local artists and give them guidance on topics like talent management, and music distribution, among others.
Speaking at the Press Conference, Hellen Namutamba, the Minister of Busoga Tourism and Heritage said Nyege Nyege Concert has been a real game changer in Busoga sub-region.
The show, she said, has gone a long way in changing the lives of residents and proved itself a “catalyst for local development in Busoga and across.”
The Minister also revealed that a lot of development has been taken to Busoga by the government, thanks to Nyege Nyege.
For instance, she said, the bad road to Itanda Falls which was complained about last year, was included in the budget and is currently being worked on.
At Itanda Falls, the government has also brought a power line and NWSC also extended water services to the site.
This year’s Nyege Nyege is being sponsored by Talent Africa, Uganda Breweries Ltd, Busoga Kingdom, and Next Media.