All on board with WakaWaka Moo
Luis Munana launches his cartoon show and gets endorsements from local ministries to help with the success of the first Namibian cartoon puppet series.
According to the cartoon founder, Luis Munana, Waka in this context means 'go on' and if one was to translate its meaning, it means“go on or continue doingand chasing your dreams.” Munana says he got the inspiration tostart a cartoon series when he was babysitting and looking after his nephews and nieces.
He was thrilled to see them sing along the cartoons tunes. The cartoons were western and had no relevance to Africans. “Then it hit me. Us as Namibians are not represented in cartoonsand we do not have puppetry or cartoon shows on our TV stations telling our own stories and adventures. It was then that I realised I have to be the change I want to see in the world,” he said with pride. A year later, here he is making his dream a reality.
The cartoon series is a campaign incorporating songs,dance,storytelling,history, science and preserving culture in Uukwangali, Afrikaans, Oshiwambo, Otjiherero, Damara/Nama, Silozi, Tswana, Dutch and English. There are segments on the show that are only in cartoon form and then there are segments which involve child hosts interacting with real life hand puppets. The aim, according to Munana is to preserve Namibian stories by making them relevant, fun and exciting. Munana has shot over 26 episodes thus far and he wants to ensure that every Namibian child sees an episode at least. Discussions are still underway with television stations to get the programme airplay. In the interim, the Waka Waka Moo crew will be visiting primary schools in rural areas in collaboration with relevant ministries to show the episodes starting from September. “Growing up, not everyone had a television at home so we would gather at a neighbour's house to watch. I know that not all kids have access to television and that's why we want to have them in schools. I want the Namibian child to watch TV and be able to watch cartoons and hear them speak their native language,” he said.
Munana said he is in the process of securing funds to enable him to travel and take WakaWaka Moo to every child in Namibia. He says it is critical for children to remember their stories and realise that they too have Namibian and African heroes, kings, queens and princesses.
June Shimuoshili
He was thrilled to see them sing along the cartoons tunes. The cartoons were western and had no relevance to Africans. “Then it hit me. Us as Namibians are not represented in cartoonsand we do not have puppetry or cartoon shows on our TV stations telling our own stories and adventures. It was then that I realised I have to be the change I want to see in the world,” he said with pride. A year later, here he is making his dream a reality.
The cartoon series is a campaign incorporating songs,dance,storytelling,history, science and preserving culture in Uukwangali, Afrikaans, Oshiwambo, Otjiherero, Damara/Nama, Silozi, Tswana, Dutch and English. There are segments on the show that are only in cartoon form and then there are segments which involve child hosts interacting with real life hand puppets. The aim, according to Munana is to preserve Namibian stories by making them relevant, fun and exciting. Munana has shot over 26 episodes thus far and he wants to ensure that every Namibian child sees an episode at least. Discussions are still underway with television stations to get the programme airplay. In the interim, the Waka Waka Moo crew will be visiting primary schools in rural areas in collaboration with relevant ministries to show the episodes starting from September. “Growing up, not everyone had a television at home so we would gather at a neighbour's house to watch. I know that not all kids have access to television and that's why we want to have them in schools. I want the Namibian child to watch TV and be able to watch cartoons and hear them speak their native language,” he said.
Munana said he is in the process of securing funds to enable him to travel and take WakaWaka Moo to every child in Namibia. He says it is critical for children to remember their stories and realise that they too have Namibian and African heroes, kings, queens and princesses.
June Shimuoshili
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