China held the 2024 Mooncake Festival in Abuja on Saturday with a lot of side attractions.
The Mooncake Festival, one of the popular Chinese Festivals, was organised in Nigeria to promote and strengthen the people-to-people relationship between China and Nigeria.
Speaking to journalists on the event’s sideline, the Cultural Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria, Li Xuda, said the festival was one of the most important holidays in Chinese culture for the past 3,000 years.
He added that the festival represents the harvest season and the idea that hard work leads to a fruitful result.
He said: “Today’s celebration is very important and meaningful because the Mid-autumn, also called ‘the Mooncake Day’, is one of the most important Chinese traditional festivals.
“In this festival, we celebrate family reunion, friendship and togetherness; like the popular proverb in Nigeria, united we stand and divided we fall.
“To stand hand-by-hand, shoulder-to-shoulder, we will create a better future which belongs to our people and benefits our two countries.”
He added: “In the future, China and Nigeria will work together to promote our tangible and intangible cultural heritage and really further strengthen our cultural exchange and cooperation.”
Li also noted that the festival was often celebrated annually on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, usually in September or October, when the moon is very full and the size is bigger.
Many prizes were won in raffle draws conducted during the event, including a N1 million dining voucher which was won by a journalist.