The Copyright Society of Malawi (COSOMA) has urged local artists from the Lhomwe belt to be aggressive and remain vigilant in protecting their intellectual property such as songs, paintings, dances and other artistic works.

COSOMA’s Regional Head for South, Tikhale Chikanda made the call on Thursday in Phalombe district during a two day capacity building workshop for Lhomwe belt artists and performers.

Chikanda said time has come for local artists and cultural heritages such as Mulhako Wa Alomwe to be familiar with copyright laws so that they should be able to ‘protect and prevent’ their ideas from being copied.

He further challenged local artists and cultural performers to be producing works of good quality and educative to the masses.

Mulhako’s Project Coordinator, John Lundu said nurturing cultural creativity can greatly assist cultural performers to become economically independent in their respective areas.

Taking her turn Eunice Napolo, who is the Trustee for Mulhako Wa Alhomwe, commended Cosoma for supporting the heritage.

She then appealed to the government through COSOMA to continue supporting efforts that promote culture through fostering cultural creativity and artistic skills.

Over 80 cultural performers and artists from Lhomwe bet districts of Phalombe, Mulanje, Thyolo and Chiradzulu attended the training workshop organised by Mulhako Wa Alhomwe with support from COSOMA through Copyright fund.

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