Preparations for the famous New Ireland Shark-Calling Festival is set to take place at Kono village West Coast, Sentral Niu Ailan, Namatanai District from Sunday July 16th- Tuesday July 18th.
The three-day festival is a gazetted provincial event and was recently recognized in 2021 as a National event under the Tourism Promotion Authority’s Calendar.
Chairman of the Provincial Event Committee and event organizer, John Merebo said preparations are well underway with local and international tourists already showing interests to attend and witness this ancient festival.
The event is being organized by the locals with funding support from the New Ireland Government. The New Ireland Celebration’s Committee has set Monday, 17th July as the main event.
Guests are expected to witness the Shark-Calling expedition where traditional ways of catching sharks used by the locals including display of live sharks and costumes used at expeditions.
Shark Calling is very rare and is only practiced in the East Coast and West Coast of Central Niu Ailan, especially the Mandak and Barok area.
Minister for Arts and Culture, Isi Henry Leonard is expected to speak at the event.
The Chan-Missen government continues to urge the locals to hold onto their tradition and embrace this culture.