Kalba Jashe and Sahnah Festival Concludes with Remarkable Success
The inaugural Kalba Jashe and Sahnah Festival has drawn to a close following an extraordinarily successful four-day celebration of traditional maritime heritage and seafood craftsmanship, welcoming over 45,000 visitors and generating AED1 million in sales.
The Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and Kalba City Municipality have successfully concluded the inaugural Kalba Jashe and Sahnah Festival, a celebration of traditional coastal craftsmanship that exceeded all expectations. The event welcomed more than 45,000 visitors across four days and generated AED1 million in sales, far surpassing the initial target of approximately 10,000 attendees from across the United Arab Emirates.
Held at Al Samar Neighbourhood Park in Kalba’s Al Ghail Suburb, the festival created a vibrant marketplace spanning 4,800 square metres. The event brought together more than 85 productive families specialising in traditional seafood products, complemented by the participation of ten government entities and six national companies and factories focused on fishing supplies and fish processing.
A closing ceremony honoured the winners of three principal competitions: the best Jashe and Sahnah products for adults, the most innovative Jashe or Sahnah dish for families, and the outstanding Jashe or Sahnah products designed for children aged seven to fifteen. These competitions served a deeper cultural purpose, aiming to preserve the knowledge and traditional preparation methods of coastal communities whilst ensuring these valued practices are transmitted to younger generations.
Mohammad Ahmed Amin Al Awadi, Director-General of SCCI, described the festival’s success as a significant milestone in the Chamber’s endeavours to stimulate commercial and tourism activity throughout Sharjah, particularly across the eastern region. He expressed gratitude to the UAE leadership for its continued support of the fishing sector and traditional crafts, whilst reaffirming SCCI’s commitment to developing the festival as a dynamic platform for empowering productive families and entrepreneurs, supporting national food security through local marine resources, and strengthening Kalba’s prominence in heritage food industries.
Ahmed Saeed Al Mazrouei, Director of Kalba City Municipality, emphasised the importance of the partnership with SCCI, noting that the substantial attendance reflected the Kalba community’s profound connection to its maritime heritage and demonstrated the city’s capability to host distinctive tourism and cultural events. He articulated the municipality’s aspiration to establish the festival as an annual occasion that would further enhance Kalba’s reputation as a tourism destination while providing productive families with expanded opportunities to market their products and broaden their customer base.
The festival showcased the region’s rich maritime traditions through handmade models of historic wooden vessels, including the Boom, Sanbook, Shu’i and Jalboot, alongside displays of traditional fishing and pearl-diving equipment. Daily educational workshops explored responsible fishing practices, modern fish-drying methods and marine environmental protection, delivered in cooperation with the Sharjah Fish Resources Authority. The celebrations were complemented by captivating live folkloric performances that brought traditional culture to life.
Source: WAM