What's on in Nairobi and East Africa: 9–23 October

Events from 9 to 23 October 2026, grouped by city and listed by date. Prices are as shown on the organiser or ticket page.

Nairobi

• 10 October · Fred Obachi Machoka @50 — Ulinzi Sports Complex · Regular KES 8,000 (sales end 9 October); VIP KES 20,000; VVIP KES 35,000; Corporate Table (6 people) KES 170,000 — Music event for Fred Obachi Machoka, who hosts the rhumba show Roga Roga on Radio Citizen and Citizen TV and marks 50 years behind the microphone. Citizen Digital reported on 7 October that Sam Fan Thomas was already in Nairobi and that Koffi Olomide and Mbilia Bel were expected to arrive on 8 and 9 October respectively — Viutickets
• Until 10 October · Kiure Francis Msangi: From Makerere to Stanford and the Nairobi Years — Circle Art Gallery, Victoria Square, Riara Road, Lavington · price not listed — The show closes on Saturday 10 October. The gallery is open 10am to 5pm on weekdays and noon to 5pm at weekends, and is closed on public holidays; 10 October is Mazingira Day, a public holiday in Kenya — Circle Art Agency
• 14 October · Art Auction East Africa 2026, preview party — Circle Art Gallery, Victoria Square, Riara Road · price not listed — Preview party from 6pm to 8pm. The live sale is on 28 October at 7pm; registration queries go to [email protected] — Art Auction East Africa
• 15–25 October · NBO Film Festival — Prestige Cinemas, Unseen Nairobi and Alliance Française · price not listed; free screenings can be filtered on the schedule page — Opens on 15 October at 5pm at Prestige Cinemas, followed at 7pm by Ben'Imana. Alain Gomis films screen at Alliance Française at 6pm on 19, 21, 22, 23 and 24 October, KBC reported on 9 October. The closing ceremony is on 25 October at 7pm — NBO Film Festival
• 16–18 October · 21st Affordable Art Show — Nairobi National Museum · price not listed — The Kenya Museum Society calls the Affordable Art Show its principal fundraiser — Kenya Museum Society
• 20 October · One Night Only: Brunch Edition with Ne-Yo — Ulinzi Sports Complex · Gold KES 15,000; Gold flash sale KES 10,000; Gold couple or friends package (two tickets) KES 20,000; Platinum Green Area four-seater table KES 160,000 — 3pm to 11pm, with Sol & The Gang. Early Bird Gold (KES 7,500) and Wave 2 Gold are sold out — TicketYetu

Kigali

• 9 October · The Anniversary: Soul Cipher — Depot 37, Mundi Center, KN 3 Road, Gikondo · RWF 7,000 advance, RWF 10,000 gate — One year of the soul, R&B and live-music night. Doors open at 7pm; the show runs from 8pm to 10pm — Mundi Center
• 10 October · FoodFest — The Piazza, Mundi Center · price not listed — Food stalls with more vendors than the last edition — Mundi Center
• 10–11 October · TWESE: Pure AfroHouse — Depot 37, Mundi Center · RWF 12,000 regular, RWF 20,000 VIP — Afro House night from 6pm on 10 October to 2:30am on 11 October, with Kenya's Tina Ardor and Ally Fresh, and Rwanda's K'Ru and DJ Motari — Mundi Center
• 15–17 October · AAIFF Africa 2026 — French Institute of Rwanda, Kigali · tickets through Eventbrite, price not listed — The All African Independent Film Festival, for independent films from across Africa — AAIFF Africa
• 18 October · Urban Kids — The Piazza, Mundi Center · RWF 5,000 for children, parents free — 1pm to 6pm, with juggling, circus tricks, face painting, bouncy castles and games — Mundi Center
• 23 October · A Contemporary Evening with Ritadeviolinist — Mundi Center · RWF 15,000 early bird, RWF 20,000 regular, RWF 25,000 gate — Violinist Rita plays well-known songs and her own compositions with a live band, dancers and other musicians, 6pm to 11pm — Mundi Center

Kilifi

• 16–19 October · Kisima Festival 2026: The Love Edition — Beneath the Baobabs, about 5km south of Kilifi on the Mombasa–Malindi Highway · tickets from KES 2,000 on Quicket — Four-day wellbeing festival on the theme of love, with workshops, classes and talks. Self-camping is included with the ticket — Quicket

Kampala

• Until 21 November · Sanaa Gateja: They Too Are the Earth — Afriart Gallery, 110-112 7th Street · admission not listed — Paper-bead tapestries on bark cloth, new works on banana fibre and found root sculptures, curated by Daudi Karungi. Open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 6pm, and 10am to 4pm on public holidays — Afriart Gallery

More events and tickets: https://www.ficafilm.com/news/events