eThekwini Municipality invests R900,000 in the upcoming Reed Dance ceremony

The eThekwini Municipality has budgeted R900,000 for bus hire and accommodation for its officials to attend the Umkhosi woMlanga (Reed Dance) ceremony at the Mashobeni Palace in KwaZulu-Natal on September 12, 2025. 

Maidens from various parts of the country will attend and participate in the Reed Dance, including 1,300 maidens within the eThekwini Municipality.

Additionally, five councillors will attend to provide oversight, as well as eight officials to oversee the logistical arrangements, including transport provision, marquees, food, and the provision of security, among other logistical arrangements.

In a report that will be put forward for approval at a council meeting on Wednesday, the municipality stated that the Governance Framework Act set out the procedure for the recognition of traditional communities and traditional leaders.

The municipality stated that the Community and Social Development (CSD) Directorate develops programmes that address issues affecting traditional communities and traditional leaders. 

The CSD Directorate collaborates with the Traditional Council that operates within the eThekwini Municipality to ensure programme effectiveness.

The municipality stated that the Reed Dance ceremony is one of the programmes celebrated annually in KZN and holds a profound significance within the Zulu Nation. 

The Reed Dance Ceremony was celebrated during the reign of Shaka Zulu and was reintroduced in 1984 with maidens and Amabutho. It is narrated as being a ritual established by the prehistoric King of the Zulu Nation. 

The key objectives of the Reed Dance Ceremony are as follows:

1.  To celebrate the purity of maidens and to encourage abstinence.
2.  To enhance social cohesion within respective communities participating in the ceremony.
3.  To curb HIV/Aids and teenage pregnancy in societies.
4.  To provide educational programmes for the maidens, addressing social ills, health, feminine hygiene, etc.

The municipality discussed challenges normally encountered during this event, which needed to be addressed and effect the necessary improvements. The challenges experienced previously were:

• Insufficient marquees to accommodate maidens, which resulted in some maidens sleeping outside while it was raining.
• Insufficient bus distribution left many maidens stranded and unable to participate in the event, which tarnished the city's image. 

The municipality has budgeted to hire 20 buses at an estimated cost of R44,000 each and also R33,000 for accommodation of eThekwini officials. Two of the officials will spend three nights, while six officials will spend two nights at the event. 

The event celebrates young maidens’ purity, alluding to their virginity, while urging them to abstain from early sexual practices, thereby preventing teenage pregnancy and sexually related diseases.

Furthermore, with various social ills on the rise, the Reed Dance has expanded its course, where it raises awareness on gender-based violence and femicide, including the heightened unemployment rate that is plaguing young people, women in particular.

zainul.dawood@inl.co.za