Ngaree Ah Kit
Minister for Multicultural Affairs
Media Release
Weekend festivals highlight Territory’s multicultural diversity
3 June 2022
The Northern Territory’s rich history of multiculturalism is being celebrated with several community events this weekend, showcasing our cultural diversity.
Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Ngaree Ah Kit, will travel to Alice Springs to join this year’s Big Day Out in Harmony on Saturday, 4 June from 12pm. Organised by Multicultural Community Services of Central Australia, the day represents the city’s biggest multicultural event each year.
This year’s Big Day Out in Harmony, on the council lawns, features interactive displays, live and hybrid performances, and cuisines from various community groups representing the Nepalese, Sikh, Malayalee and West African communities, among others. Headline performer, Ajak Kwai, will take audiences on a journey of inclusion drawing on her South Sudanese funk and blues influences.
In the Top End on Saturday, vivid colours, music and cuisine will combine for the Hindu Society of the Northern Territory’s first Harmony Food Festival. The event will kick-off from 4pm at the Harmony Hall in Patterson Street, Malak.
At Darwin Waterfront from 3pm Saturday, Himalayan Tea Tasting is just one feature of the Nepal Festival, hosted by the Non-resident Nepali Association of the Northern Territory. Food, music, dance, art displays and fireworks will celebrate the traditions of the Territory’s Nepalese community.
While on Sunday, 5 June, singer, songwriter and actor, Tahsan Rahman Khan will join local performers in bringing the contemporary sounds of Bangladesh to Darwin for the Bangladeshi Festival 2022. The festival of food and cultural performances will be held at Charles Darwin University, Casuarina Campus from 5pm.
The festivals are supported by the Territory Labour Government’s Multicultural Grants Program for 2021-2022. More than $1 million was provided through the program to help migrant and multicultural organisations, and to develop the Northern Territory’s social and cultural inclusivity.
More upcoming festivals and more information can be found on the Multicultural Festivals NT Facebook page: facebook.com/MulticulturalFestivalsNT .
Quotes from Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Ngaree Ah Kit.
“Right across the Northern Territory, we have vibrant multicultural communities and it is wonderful that so many people from all over the world choose to make the Territory their home.
“Our lives are richer for the diversity we have in our communities and festivals like these show how our differences can actually bring us together.
“The success of our migrant communities confirms how the Northern Territory is a place of opportunity and that migration continues to contribute to social and economic life in the Territory.”
Northern Territory Government
