The annual festival which was held at several sites in Kachin State on January 10 draws hundreds of thousands of revelers from the seven tribes that make up the Kachin ethnic group. This year, the event will be organized in 9-10 January 2017 in Myitkyina & Putao in Kachin State.

This festival has been held for more than three decades and is the celebration of the New Year, Victory in battles and reunion of the tribes. The traditional Manaw poles are decorated in colorful Kachin motifs and are centered in the middle of the festival ground. Everybody will wear their best traditional costume and the main feature of the festival is spiritual dance around the erected Manaw poles.

The Kachin Manaw Festival is also an ideal time and location to visit the Himalayan foothills around Putao, for light hiking and clear views of the mountains. The Kachin Manaw Festival, or manau pwe, is undoubtedly one of the country's spectacular displays of ethnic culture and solidarity.