The Motherland Experience

Des Moines, Iowa · August 8, 2026

Celebrating African Heritage, Community Building & Mental Health Awareness

Join us in celebrating diversity and fostering inclusion.

Food  ·  Music  ·  Dance  ·  Vendors  ·  Family Activities

FESTIVAL INFOGET INVOLVED
The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.The Motherland Experience: Helping our community thrive.

Date

Saturday, August 8, 2026

Hours

10:00 AM – 7:00 PM

Location

Western Gateway Park, Des Moines, IA

Countdown to the Festival

The First African Festival of Its Kind in Des Moines.

Experience the sights, sounds, flavors, and traditions of Africa at The Motherland Experience Festival this summer.

08Days
19Hours
53Minutes
06Seconds
Algeria flagAlgeria•Angola flagAngola•Benin flagBenin•Botswana flagBotswana•Burkina Faso flagBurkina Faso•Burundi flagBurundi•Cape Verde flagCape Verde•Cameroon flagCameroon•Central African Republic flagCentral African Republic•Chad flagChad•Comoros flagComoros•DR Congo flagDR Congo•Republic of the Congo flagRepublic of the Congo•Djibouti flagDjibouti•Egypt flagEgypt•Equatorial Guinea flagEquatorial Guinea•Eritrea flagEritrea•Eswatini flagEswatini•Ethiopia flagEthiopia•Gabon flagGabon•Gambia flagGambia•Ghana flagGhana•Guinea flagGuinea•Guinea-Bissau flagGuinea-Bissau•Côte d'Ivoire flagCôte d'Ivoire•Kenya flagKenya•Lesotho flagLesotho•Liberia flagLiberia•Libya flagLibya•Madagascar flagMadagascar•Malawi flagMalawi•Mali flagMali•Mauritania flagMauritania•Mauritius flagMauritius•Morocco flagMorocco•Mozambique flagMozambique•Namibia flagNamibia•Niger flagNiger•Nigeria flagNigeria•Rwanda flagRwanda•São Tomé and Príncipe flagSão Tomé and Príncipe•Senegal flagSenegal•Seychelles flagSeychelles•Sierra Leone flagSierra Leone•Somalia flagSomalia•South Africa flagSouth Africa•South Sudan flagSouth Sudan•Sudan flagSudan•Tanzania flagTanzania•Togo flagTogo•Tunisia flagTunisia•Uganda flagUganda•Zambia flagZambia•Zimbabwe flagZimbabwe•Algeria flagAlgeria•Angola flagAngola•Benin flagBenin•Botswana flagBotswana•Burkina Faso flagBurkina Faso•Burundi flagBurundi•Cape Verde flagCape Verde•Cameroon flagCameroon•Central African Republic flagCentral African Republic•Chad flagChad•Comoros flagComoros•DR Congo flagDR Congo•Republic of the Congo flagRepublic of the Congo•Djibouti flagDjibouti•Egypt flagEgypt•Equatorial Guinea flagEquatorial Guinea•Eritrea flagEritrea•Eswatini flagEswatini•Ethiopia flagEthiopia•Gabon flagGabon•Gambia flagGambia•Ghana flagGhana•Guinea flagGuinea•Guinea-Bissau flagGuinea-Bissau•Côte d'Ivoire flagCôte d'Ivoire•Kenya flagKenya•Lesotho flagLesotho•Liberia flagLiberia•Libya flagLibya•Madagascar flagMadagascar•Malawi flagMalawi•Mali flagMali•Mauritania flagMauritania•Mauritius flagMauritius•Morocco flagMorocco•Mozambique flagMozambique•Namibia flagNamibia•Niger flagNiger•Nigeria flagNigeria•Rwanda flagRwanda•São Tomé and Príncipe flagSão Tomé and Príncipe•Senegal flagSenegal•Seychelles flagSeychelles•Sierra Leone flagSierra Leone•Somalia flagSomalia•South Africa flagSouth Africa•South Sudan flagSouth Sudan•Sudan flagSudan•Tanzania flagTanzania•Togo flagTogo•Tunisia flagTunisia•Uganda flagUganda•Zambia flagZambia•Zimbabwe flagZimbabwe•

Representing the diversity of the African diaspora — all 54 nations, one community.

The Motherland Experience Festival Flyer — Saturday August 8, 2026, Western Gateway Park, Des Moines IA

Services & Programs

What We Stand For

Three pillars, one celebration — each rooted in the belief that culture, health, and opportunity belong together.

Mental health wellness community

Mental Health Awareness

We promote mental health awareness and community wellness by encouraging open dialogue, education and culturally responsive resources that support emotional and psychological well-being.

African market economic empowerment

Economic Empowerment

We believe economic empowerment and opportunity are the cornerstones of community growth. The Motherland Experience serves as a catalyst for entrepreneurship and community development.

TME Festival outdoor celebration

The Motherland Experience Festival

Celebrate summer with us at a free community festival for the whole family! From cultural food and local vendors to live entertainment and exciting activities.

Young girl in traditional African attire
Child in vibrant traditional African clothing
Woman wearing geometric patterned head wrap
Child performing traditional African dance

Join the Movement

Be Part of the Experience

Whether you want to volunteer, showcase your business as a vendor, support the festival as a founding sponsor, or make a donation — there's a place for you at The Motherland Experience.

VolunteerVendorSponsorDonate

Stay in the Loop

Subscribe

Get exclusive updates and event information when you sign up for our newsletter.

Reach Out

Contact Us

Drop us a line — we'd love to hear from you.

Visit Us

Better yet, see us in person!

Want to meet in person and experience the richness of diverse cultures firsthand? Come on in! We're located in Des Moines, IA.

General Inquiry Hours

Monday – Friday09:00 am – 05:00 pm
SaturdayClosed
SundayClosed

These are general inquiry hours. Festival hours on August 8 are 10 AM – 7 PM.

The Motherland Experience African Festival Location

Western Gateway Park

1205 Locust St, Des Moines, IA 50309

[email protected]

Parking and accessibility details available in our FAQ.

Have Questions?

Find answers about attending, volunteering, sponsoring, parking, food vendors, family activities, and more.

View FAQ's

Together We Rise

Community Collaborators

The Motherland Experience is made possible through the support and collaboration of these incredible organizations.

Coffee FC
Catholic Charities — Diocese of Des Moines
ForWard Consulting
Ghana Association — Iowa
Mama Africa
ALN Studios
Mindspring Mental Health Alliance
One Voice DSM
Africans in Iowa for Empowerment
Iowa African Film Festival
Life Chapel International
Nigerian Association of Iowa
CAROKIMS Media Inc
Rwandan Community of Iowa
+