On Wednesday, September 9, 2026, the 31st edition of the Gbi-dukor Za (Gbi festival) was officially launched at a colourful ceremony at Hohoe in the Volta region, to kick start preparations towards the grand celebration of the festival at Hohoe in December.
The “Gbi-dukor Za,” since it was instituted in 1995, some 31 years ago, with the first edition celebrated at Hohoe, is organised annually on rotational basis between the Chiefs and the people of the Gbi-Dzigbe (Hohoe) and Gbi-Nyigbe (Peki) traditional areas, forming the two Gbi-States.
As it pertains to the celebration of any other cultural festival in Ghana, the Gbi-dukor Za equally has socio-cultural and economic objectives. Key among these objectives is to promote and project the cultural and traditional values and institutions of the two Gbi States.
It is also a medium to advertise the economic potentials of the two States, with the objective to woo Investors to tap into the rich mineral resources of the two States, to create employment and development.
Another equally important aspect of the festival is the platform it creates to cement the bonds of friendship between the Chiefs and people of the Gbi States, who according to history have a common ancestral lineage dating back to the era of the migration of the Ewe ethnic groups to their present-day settlements.
Historically, the records indicate, that the two traditional areas, Hohoe and Peki, forming part of the larger Ewe groupings migrated from Nigeria, through to Notsie in present day Republic of Togo before parting ways to settle at their present abodes, largely influenced by geographical factors such as arable land for agriculture and proximity to water systems.
The common cultural similarities such as language bears testimony to this assertion. The annual celebration of the festival since 1995 has grown from strength to strength.
It has brought a lot of development projects to the two traditional areas, provided the platform for the two States to address issues confronting their traditional areas and also reunited the Chiefs and people of the two States after more than three hundred years of separation. Additionally, the annual celebration of the festival has undoubtedly unearthed the economic potentials of the two States and the creative talents of the youth.
It has also placed the two traditional areas on the tourism map locally and internationally, raking in much revenue for the country. Without any shade of doubt, one can say, that the Gbi-dukor Za has become one of the celebrated traditional and cultural festivals in Ghana today, attracting both local and foreign participation.
For the people of the Gbi States, it has become the unifying force in their cultural diversity. In spite of these notable achievements however, there is the school of thought, which contends, that thirty years in the life of the celebration of the festival could have registered many more achievements. But whichever way one looks at it, there is no denying the fact, that the celebration has played a pivotal role in the development, progress and unity of the two Gbi States with a common vision.
The theme for this year’s celebration, which is “Transforming Lives Through The Gbi-dukor Education Endowment Fund,” underscores the importance and relevance of education in the development of any society. Therefore, it is our hope, that the adoption of this theme will transform the level of education in the two traditional areas.
Unfortunately today, some of the founding fathers through whose vision the festival was instituted are no more. They have joined our ancestors in the other world. However, they would forever be remembered and their names written in gold, for their vision lives on.
As preparation kick start in earnest to showcase the rice traditional and cultural festival of the two states in December, it is the expectation of all that this year’s festival will be another shining example and add to the glory of previous ones.
As we await for another colourful celebration of the festival in December, we say Ayekoo to the chiefs and people of the two Gbi States. We pray for continued, development progress, growth, unity strength and life in good health and strength.
The writer is a Public Relations Practitioner
BY NELSON KOFI AKATEY
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