A Ndege performance is a local traditional form of dancing, drumming and singing popularly termed as Ngoma. There are literally hundreds of different Ngoma styles throughout Tanzania with a number of these originating from Zanzibar and all are spectacular to watch, especially Ndege. Ndege, together with Kunguwiya, are two types of dances which marked the completion of the female initiation ritual or 'Mkinda' on Zanzibar about a century ago. This 'Mkinda' ceremony was created after the abolition of slavery on Zanzibar at the end of the 19th century, when women of mixed African and Arab descent joined with other newly emancipated slave women in a new form of initiation.

In jointly dancing the Ndege, the women of Zanzibar therefore signified and celebrated a newly emerging social and political order that incorporated elements from pre-existing coastal slave and ruling class cultures, representing the broad spectrum of Zanzibar's complex ethnic heritage, and regardless whether they would define themselves as Swahili, Arab, Comorian, Manyema, or from other ethnic backgrounds. It even included women from the poorest slave backgrounds. The symbols displayed during the dancing of Ndege also reflected the diversity of Zanzibar's national heritage. The clothing worn during the procession was that of the 19th century Arab female aristocracy while the umbrellas symbolized male elite political authority. By appropriating these signs of political authority, women who were not of communities traditionally entitled to use them symbolically asserted their rights to be recognized as members of the new post-slavery civil society. Ndege, and also Kunguiya, were unique in this aspect.

Most other forms of women's popular dance during this era were segregated by class, including other (non-'Mkinda') forms of female initiation practices. At the same time however -as some scholars argue- Kunguiya, and particularly of Ndege, by their very nature had the opposite effect, highlighting the persistence of other forms of difference between women based on class, status, and family background. Ndege was always performed between the two sets of evening prayers, thus symbolically bracketing the dance and its performers within the bounds of Islam. The clothing worn by the young initiates and their instructors during Ndege was a colourful dress that was worn in the 19th century exclusively by women of the Arab elite and ruling class, including tight fitting pants with frills on the bottom known as marinda, a long chemise to the knees, and a particular type of hat, accompanied by lots of gold jewelry and strings of jasmine flowers and roses.

The dancers move forwards with slightly rotating steps and movements of the hips, carrying a bright umbrella or parasol, one of the most important symbolic elements of ruling class attire in those days. The dancing of Kunguiya and Ndege took place on an annual basis during the month before Ramadan, the Islamic holy month. Although the Mkinda initiation ceremonies were highly secretive, the performance of Kunguiya and Ndege were public, and it was the crowds of men and women who came to watch the dancers that decided who had won the competitions.