EVERY year, the Kadayawan Festival celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Davao City’s 11 ethnolinguistic tribes, including the traditional games known as "Dula Kadayawan."
Kadayawan Festival provides a platform for the Moro and Lumad communities to showcase and preserve their cultural practices, fostering camaraderie as the 11 tribes compete in these traditional games.
Each tribe contributes one game, playing with heart and pride—not just to win, but to ensure their culture is well-represented. Though the competitive spirit is strong, sportsmanship prevails as the tribes unite to celebrate their shared heritage.
Through friendly competition, the tribes aim to raise awareness and educate the youth and broader community about their deep-rooted traditions.
For this year’s Dula Kadayawan, Jennifer R. Romero, officer-in-charge of the City Tourism Operations Office (CTOO), underscored the importance of highlighting these traditional games, especially for today’s children. She stressed the need to preserve these games for future generations.
“With the full support of all 11 deputy mayors, who have been actively involved in preparing for this event, we are very grateful. Their dedication to all the activities shows they feel like a part of the celebration, making them integral to the Kadayawan event,” Romero said.
She added that CTOO has partnered with the Department of Education (DepEd) to immerse teachers and students in the tribal games.
The goal is to ensure these traditional games are taught in schools, helping preserve the tribes' culture and traditions.
“DepEd Region 11 will send teachers, particularly those related to physical education or MAPEH, to observe and review the traditional games featured in Dula Kadayawan. Our objective is to generate interest not only among the general Dabawenyo public but also within schools, making the event more educational,” Romero added.
Dula Kadayawan offered an immersive experience, blending education and engagement to deepen participants' understanding of the rich cultural significance behind each indigenous game. AJA