Culture enthusiasts in Kenya are set to gather in Lake Victoria's Rusinga Island later this week for the annual Rusinga Festival, which aims to nurture and promote the Abasuba culture and traditions.

The 2019 festival will the eighth edition, and will be held between 19-20 December.

The annual event attracts thousands of people from across the East African country and beyond. Organizers say the two-day event gives attendees the chance to enjoy indigenous Suba music, fashion, film, food, artistry, literature, sports and conversations that will take them back in time into the wealth of the Suba culture.

The Suba language and culture are threatened by extinction having gone through years of assimilation into other cultures, including the Luo culture.

Though there are still a few thousand native Suba people in Kenya, most of them – mainly members of the younger generation – do not speak the Suba language. A lot of them speak the Luo language fluently and live by the Luo culture. They identify themselves as Luos of Suba descent.

This risk of entirely losing a culture and language drove Anne Eboso to begin a project to save the Suba tribe, culminating to the now vibrant Rusinga Festival.

As the main founder of the Rusinga Cultural Festival, Anne hopes to mobilize actors from across different sectors to join forces to ensure future Abasuba generations will enjoy their culture and speak their language.

"I feel it is very important for every community to have its own identity. I feel the things that make up a community, be it the way of life, language of a people, the culture and customs of a people are very important in the socio-economic development of any community. I felt the Abasuba people needed to own their culture and language as opposed to what was happening." Anne said during the seventh edition held in December 2018.

The Suba culture is not the only language in Kenya threatened with extinction. Others include the El-Molo, Kinare, Kore, Lorkoti and Sogoo.