In Yaoundé, experts, players, and cultural institutions unite their voices around Songo, this ancestral game that has become a symbol of sub-regional integration and heritage transmission.
From May 11 to 14, 2026, Yaoundé lent its breath to the clicking of Songo seeds and the stories they have carried for generations. In workshop rooms as well as in hallway exchanges, the famous traditional game of Central Africa regains all its symbolic power. Organized by the Sub-Regional Commission of Songo (CSRS) and the International Center for Cultural and Artistic Heritage (CIPCA), these meetings bring together practitioners, researchers, and enthusiasts around a shared ambition: to save, structure, and transmit a cultural heritage long confined to family courtyards and public squares.
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Received at the UNESCO Regional Office, the joint delegation from Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea delivered a clear message: Songo now goes beyond mere entertainment. A strategy game, a school of patience and reflection, it becomes a common language among neighboring peoples. The workshops thus aim to harmonize the rules, strengthen practice, and firmly embed Songo in the cultural and educational policies of the sub-region.
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Through this initiative, culture appears as a powerful link. On the wooden boards today are drawn much more than master moves: a shared vision of African identity, collective memory, and regional cooperation.
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