Entertainment

On Friday, families and friends celebrated St. Patrick’s Day beneath festive green balloons at  The Venue in Kacyiru.

The event attracted over 250 people and marked another success for The Central, Inc., one of Kigali’s hottest new events management company, which threw last week’s “Stiletto Party” in recognition of International Women’s Day.

“We planned this event because Kigali usually is all about night time events,” said Maryann Njoroge, Events and Marketing Manager at The Central, “So we’re bringing something new. Something for the young, the old – for everybody – to enjoy, even the families.”

St. Patrick’s Day celebrators included teens, toddlers, young adults, and parents. As kids frolicked on the grass, adults enjoyed beers and an “Asian-style” barbeque.

“Our target market for these day-time events is not only the young and upcoming, but also the young families,” said Njoroge, “It’s a holistic package.”

Entertainment outside of nightlife is lacking in Rwanda, and The Central aims to create more events that bring Kigalians together in family-friendly settings.

“On the weekends, people do a lot of weddings and that’s the only thing they look forward to during the day,” Njoroge said, “When there’s no wedding, I still want to have something to go to with my family, my kids, my friends.”

She adds: “We’re trying to create a new market to give people new avenues to meet other people – to not be constrained to the friends that they have and to create a sense of networking in Kigali.”

Event attendees agreed that day-time entertainment has a lot to offer to Kigalians, especially to families.

“A lot of these guys have kids. It’s an opportunity for them to have family time,” said Allan Karakire, “I think it’s a good thing. A lot of them don’t do things for family because there’s nothing to do.”

David Mporanyi said he is “100% supportive” of The Central’s aims.

“We need more entertainment,” Mporanyi said, “In Rwanda we don’t have that much to do besides going to the bars. We need more places where families can go – where you can take your wife and kids.”

Patrick Lipscombe, director of The Central, shared the personal significance behind the company’s aims.

“Most parents are busy like me and, to be honest, I don’t get a lot of time to spend at home,” said Lipscombe, “But if I’m doing a family event, my family can come and I get to spend time with them.”

Event attendee, Herve Rugwizangoga, praised the event but had one suggestion for The Central.

“St. Patrick’s Day – it’s a foreign thing that gets us together,” said Rugwizangoga, “Next time; we should have more Rwandan-related activities to bring us together.”

Lipscombe promises that Kigali will be seeing more day-time events in the future, courtesy of The Central.

“What we hope to achieve, and what we have lined up, are more family fun days to create family bonding,” said Lipscombe, “We want to give options to the 360, to reach to everyone in Kigali.”

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated each year on March 17. This day marks the accepted date in 493 CE of St. Patrick’s death.