The Department of Culture and Heritage is currently undertaking an exercise on the preservation and revitalisation of traditional cultural heritage, in a bid to revive the intake of traditional skills used for the construction of thatched bure.
The department is funding the construction of a large bure in the village of Nataleira, in Dawasamu, Tailevu.
The purpose of this project is to transmit the traditional knowledge from the custodians of bure building to the young generations. Six elders of Nataleira who are well versed with the construction of the ‘bure’ are working with the youths of Nataleira on this project.
Director Culture and Heritage, Mr. Peni Cavuilagi says “changes brought about through Globalization has slowly forced the erosion of these tradition skills and knowledge.”
The department’s role is to revive and preserve the traditional knowledge and skills and one form is through demonstration of building bures and cultural artifacts.
Mr. Cavuilagi says the new bure will be complete in two weeks time and can be used for traditional ceremonies and rituals.
It will also be used for the display and sale of handicrafts and traditional artifacts, which will benefit the community in terms of contributing to income generating programmes in the tourism industry.