JOHOR BAHRU, Oct 19 — The Elite 24 Festive Drums Competition will be included in the Education Ministry’s (MOE) official calendar as an annual event beginning next year.

Deputy Minister Wong Kah Woh said the competition will be organised at the district, zonal and national levels, with the finals expected to be held in September.

He said the move aims to strengthen and promote Malaysia’s cultural and artistic heritage in a more systematic and holistic manner, as the 24 Festive Drums has now gained international recognition.

“It is important that we also see participation from schools with students of diverse backgrounds. The current effort is to ensure that schools with potential are encouraged to form their own teams,” he told reporters here today.

Wong said that to date, 341 schools nationwide have active 24 Festival Drums teams, involving more than 65,000 students and the traditional Chinese performance art was first introduced in 1988.

He added that an allocation of RM100,000 has been provided to 10 schools – comprising primary, secondary, Chinese and Tamil national-type schools to establish and strengthen their respective teams. — Bernama

 Malay Mail – Malaysia