The Balkan Folklore Festival has been held for the first time in Serbia with support from Yunus Emre Institute.

The festival held under the auspices of the Turkish Embassy in Belgrade was supported also by Belgrade Program Office of the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA), Novi Pazar, Sjenica and Tutin municipalities, Novi Pazar Cultural Center, Novi Pazar Turkish Cultural Center, Novi Pazar Radio and Television, Sancak Travel and Bosniac National Council.

The festival lasted for three days with broad participation and great enthusiasm in Novi Pazar, Tutin and Sjenica cities of Serbia, and the during the festival, folklore teams from North Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina took stage.

"Festivals are major tools for sustaining our cultures"

The opening ceremony of the festival was held in Sjenica. The groups that came to Sjenica to take stage met Sjenica Major Hazbo Mujović, who indicated that he was glad to host the festival as a significant event, stressing that it was an important tool for intercultural cohesion.

The Folklore Ensemble from Çanakkale represented Turkey during the festival. The ensemble that staged the Zeybek dance from Turkey's Aegean Region aroused the interest of the audience.

On the second day of the festival, teams from Albania and Turkey took stage in Tutin and were enthusiastically applauded by the audience. At the end of the program, Tutin Municipality gave presents to the participants.

The last day of the festival was held in Novi Pazar. The dances staged by various folklore groups from different countries demonstrated the common motives in all dances.