The Odwira Festival

The Odwira Festival is celebrated by the people of Akropong-Akuapim, Aburi, Larteh and Mamfi in the Eastern Region, 30 miles from the capital, Accra.

It is also a few minutes drive from the Aburi Botanical Gardens. This is celebrated in the month of September.

The Akuapem Odwira festival was initiated by the 19th Okuapimhene of Akropong, Nana Addo Dankwa 1 (1811-1835) and was first celebrated in October 1826. It's significance is to celebrate their victory over the invincible Ashanti army during the historic battle of Katamansu near Dodowa in 1826 and also to cleanse themselves and ask for protection from their gods

 This is a very nice town located on the hilly areas of Eastern Region.

Due to its hilly terrain, the temperature there is very conducive considering the high temperatures in some other areas in Ghana.

Odwira Festival is a week long series of traditions and rituals performed to purify the town, the people and most importantly, the ancestral Stools of the Chieves. It is also a festival to celebrate the harvest of "new Yams".

Six weeks prior to the occasion, some activities are forbidden and hefty fines or serious punishment are given to people who violate this ban. Some of these activities include, no loud music, no drumming, no whistling after dark and most of all NO EATING OF YAMS.

Odwira Festival is broken into six days and each day has a significance and a purpose. This starts from Monday and ends on Sunday. Below is a break down of what actually happens on each day;

• Monday
Men from the three royal families in the town go and clear the path to their ancestral burial grounds. This is the sacred cemetery or "Ammamprobi". This is done to let them know they are invited to join in the festival.

• Tuesday
In the morning, the men from the royal family return to the sacred cemetery to get the ancestors' permission to perform the festival. As they return, guarded by the "Executioners" or Abrafo(sing. Obrafo) chanting and firing guns, the entire village gather along the streets and cheer these men. A message is given to the chief that the festival can proceed.

The ban of all the activities mentioned above are lifted. Yams can now be enjoyed. This day is the Splitting of the New Yam and there's a lot of merry making.

But before the yam ban is lifted and the new yam is introduced to the people, people gather in front of the palace cheering and clapping whiles the strongest men in the town "battle" against each other to grab one of the new yams and take it to his house to cook.

One yam is introduced at a time until all six of them have been exhausted.This yam game shows who the strongest man is in the village and its also fascinating, exciting and incredible. Trust me, its only in Ghana you can experience festivals of this calibre.

• Wednesday
This is the day reserved to Mourn the ancestors and all loved ones who passed away. This is also the day all those who died during the six week ban are buried. This is a sad day and usually people wear red or black or both. This is the usual attire Ghanaians wear when there's a funeral.
They fast throughout the day to remember dead relatives. Basically, they wail, drink and drum.

Caution: This is the day in the year alcohol consumption has been reported to be the highest in the town, so please be careful and drink responsibly on this day. The good thing is guests never buy drinks, its the other way round.

• Thursday
This day on the Odwira calender is for Feasting. People exchange foods and other gifts. Some people also pay homage to the chief and queen mother and give them presents of all kinds.

The royal families prepare mashed yams with eggs to be sent to a shrine for the ancestors to eat. This food is carried on the head by women guided by men through the principal streets to the shrine. These women look drunk and tired, walk in an uncontrolled manner, stager sometimes, run occasionally and stop abruptly. Some believe that these women are "possessed" by the ancestors as they parade down the street.

There's other forms of activities like eating and cooking competitions.

• Friday
This is the day of Celebration. The climax or the peak of the Odwira Festival. The Grand Durbar is held on this day and not only the inhabitants participate, but many dignitaries, chieves and queen mothers from all over Ghana and in fact, anybody interested come to celebrate with the principal chief and queen mother of Akropong.

On this day, the Okuapimhene and Queen mother wear their full traditional regalia and display a lot of gold on their heads, necks, wrists, fingers... you name it.This is a very colourful event. They are carried by their attendants above everybody in a palanquin(a boat-like chair) and they dance bouncing in the air, whilst there's drumming and singing going on, on the packed street. There's also  lot of gun firing by the scary looking Abrafo. After a couple of hours being "airbourne", the chief is sent to a gathering square or the durbar grounds to be seated. More drumming, dancing and rituals are performed.

This is another wonderful thing that can't be seen in any where on this planet but Ghana.The chief and queen mother receive homage from all the sub chieves and queen mothers and other dignitaries. The paramount chief gives his speech after which the celebration continues into the night.
There is an Odwira state dance in the evening, raves and many events in the night. Miss Odwira is one beauty contest you don't have to miss.

• Saturday and Sunday
These two days don't really have any thing special going on. There are a few gigs here and there but nothing official. These include soccer matches, scrabble competitions, etc.. etc..
The ‘Krontihene’ of Akuapem holds a special durbar on Sunday as part of the Odwira Festival.
The Odwira Festival is one of a kind and there isn't anything like that anywhere. You'll be amazed, electrified and on top of it all, you'll be glad you took part of a rich cultural heritage in the Ghana. No regrets, 

Festivals

Festivals are used as a means to remember ancestors and be favored with protection from them. Also, festivals are often held in order to purify the area to allow people to go into a new year with hope. If you are visiting Ghana, you'll definitely want to consider visiting some of these Ghana festivals, so here are a few that will give you a better idea of Ghana culture.

Panafest

When it comes to the art culture of Ghana, Panfest is a wonderful festival that features all types of art and culture, such as music, African dance, and various other types of performing arts. This festival is held every two years and it is dedicated to developing the continent of Africa as well as to help lift up the Pan-Africanism ideals as well.

It is also held to unite Africans and African descendants in the Diaspora and other ports of America and Europe.

Homowo

Another one of the Ghana festivals you may want to attend is the Homowo Festival, which occurs in either July or August. Homowo is a word that essentially means to make fun of hunger. This is a festival of thanksgiving and also a festival celebrating the harvest.
Ancient oral history talks about at time many years ago when there were no rains and there was a famine throughout the plains of Accra. Finally when the rains came and the harvest and food was plentiful, everyone was so excited, thankful, and happy, that they began to hold a festival that made fun of hunger.

Fiok

The Fiok Festival is one of the Ghana Festivals that shows the war culture of the Busa people who are in Ghana. Their exploits are re-enacted during the festival and there is also dancing, durbar, thanksgiving to all the gods, and drumming as well. Usually this festival is held in December.

Adae

This is a Festival that is held in the Kumasi and is a Festival that is held for the Ashanti people. It is also known as the Festival of the Asante, and the festival is to celebrate the ancestral stools of the Ashanti people being purified. This festival is held every 40 days and when it happens to fall on a Sunday, it is truly an amazing festival to see.

Hogbetsotso

The Hogbetsotso Festival is a Ghana festival that is held in November on the very first Saturday in the Volta area of the country by the Anlo Ewes people. The main feature of this exciting festival is a durbar of citizens and chiefs.

This is also known as the festival of the Exodus as well, and it is held each year to celebrate how the Anlo Ewes were able to escape from King Agokoli of Togo, who was a very tyrannical ruler. All the chiefs of the area appear in their most regal attire and sit to receive homage from the subjects that are in attendance. Through the entire festival, there is dancing and drumming to be enjoyed.

The Odwira Festiva

The Odwira Festival is celebrated by the people of Akropong-Akuapim, Aburi, Larteh and Mamfi in the Eastern Region, 30 miles from the capital, Accra.

It is also a few minutes drive from the Aburi Botanical Gardens. This is celebrated in the month of September.

As you can see, many of the old traditions of Ghanaians are celebrated during these festivals as well as the Ghana culture. There are many other common festivals that occur as well, and every big event in life is marked by some kind of ritual or rite.

Marriage, puberty, child naming, and of course death is marked by big ceremonies and festivals. Also, the festivals that occur throughout the year also work to bring clans together in an amazing

Ghana Tourism Attractions

Boti Water Fall 

 Today there are more and more people finding out what an exciting place Ghana is to visit. The country of Ghana offers many tourist attractions that are exciting to visit and interesting, whether you enjoy nature, history, or just having a great time. You'll find castles, waterfalls and lakes, natural attractions, and so much more, so you are sure to have a wonderful time. Tourism in Ghana is on the rise, and with all the interesting places in Ghana to visit, it is easy to see why
So, let's take a look at some of the best Ghana attractions to visit when you visit Ghana.







Historical Castles

If you are interested in history, you'll find that a top tourist attraction in the country of Ghana is the various forts and castles that the country has to offer.
You'll be able to visit various castles and witness history from long ago, and most of these castles played an important role in the tragic slave trade that used to be an integral part of the White people's economy many years ago.
One of the more interesting places in Ghana to visit when you're looking into castles and forts is the Cape Coast Castle. This is a beautiful castle that stands out on the coast and it actually dates back all the way back to the early 1600s.
It was taken over by the British in 1664 and there were literally millions of slaves that were shipped out through this castle. You'll still see the old cannons and you'll be able to take a tour of the castle and even get a look at the "Door of No Return", that so many slaves walked through.

Another castle that you'll want to consider visiting while you are in the country is the Elmina castle, which is not that far from Cape Coast. This was actually constructed back in the 1482 and is the earliest structure build by Europeans in the region.

You'll get to take a look at the dungeons that were used to hold slaves before they were shipped to Europe or America. You'll also learn that Elmina was where the first Catholic Church in Ghana was built.

The Osu-Christianborg castle in Accra, is now the "White House" of the President of Ghana.

For those who enjoy more natural attractions, such as wildlife reserves and national parks, you won't be disappointed. You'll find that there are many great national parks, sanctuaries, and game reserves for Ghana Tourists.          The Canopy Walk at Kakum Forest

You can visit the Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary that contains Mona monkeys and white and black Colobus monkeys as well. If you're interested in seeing a few hippos, then take a trip to the Bui National Park, where you'll see beautiful woodlands, the Volta river, and various antelopes, birds, monkeys, and some

huge hippos.
Probably the most popular park in Ghana is the Mole National Park, which is definitely a top tourist attraction. You can easily get there by bus, tro tro, taxi, or a private car as well.
You'll find a huge selection of wildlife in the park, including majestic elephants, baboons, monkeys, antelope, warthogs, and even bush bucks. There are some rumors that lions may even be in the park; although none have been seen in the park for about 4 years.

Another place of interest is the Paga Crocodiles in the Northern Region. Trained staff can even ride on some of these huge crocs in the water. Believe it or not, its for your eyes only.
Here are some the popular places of interest you would love

 
 As you can see, there are many interesting places in Ghana to visit and enjoy when you are there. There are so many different tourist attractions to see that you'll be hard pressed to figure out which ones to visit and which to save for your next trip to the beautiful country of Ghana

Ghana Tourism

The Ghana Tourism Cluster project is an initiative of AMSCO (African Management Services Company) and is aimed at encouraging Stakeholders in the Tourism Industry to network and help promote efficiency and professionalism in the industry.
The Regional Office of AMSCO Anglophone West Africa has identified many constraints in the Tourism Industry and has designed the Tourism Cluster as a way out. The Cluster idea simply gives the opportunity to all stakeholders in the Tourism Industry to network, work in sub-clusters, reduce costs, improve efficiency and advance tourism in Ghana

Microfinance industry

Ghana is developing things are changing not in the olden days and technology has come to stay and make great impact on the life of Ghanaian.
A group called Subtouch Interactive Limited has in a Micro finance system to companies  in Ghana.
Microfinance industry globally is experiencing major growth, fuelled by recognition of the need for financial inclusion of larger population in most countries. Spread of Microfinance business will be greatly assisted by adequate technology.
Microfinance enabling software solutions help small micro institutions in far flung areas to integrate with the networks of national level players and thus enable flow of investments, donations, disbursements, collections etc.
This objective requires MFIs to implement automation of services delivery network, business processes & workflow and above all, building of automated controls, compliance & risk management across growing enterprises.
Smaller size MFIs do not want to invest on technical skills and infrastructure that they can avoid. Hence, such MFIs need solutions that are available on Pay as you Use Models.
A beneficial software solution helps institute strong business processes in MFIs while providing flexibility to incorporate changing processes as per the changing dynamics of the industry. A business-friendly solution also ensures that it accommodates changes to the evolving regulatory environment.
Robustness & Scalability is a must while choosing a software solution.
 And now working Ghana is going to be lovely and easy .

Database management systems

A database management system (DBMS) consists of software that operates databases, providing storage, access, security, backup and other facilities. Database management systems can be categorized according to the database model that they support, such as relational or XML, the type(s) of computer they support, such as a server cluster or a mobile phone, the query language(s) that access the database, such as SQL or XQuery, performance trade-offs, such as maximum scale or maximum speed or others. Some DBMS cover more than one entry in these categories, e.g., supporting multiple query languages.Examples of some commonly used DBMS are MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft Access, SQL Server, FileMaker,Oracle, RDBMS, dBASE, Clipper,FoxPro,etc. Almost every database software comes with an Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) driver that allows the database to integrate with other databases.
 Ghana is now part  of the new world technology the use of datebase is now improving visit subtochinteractive.blogspot.com for more the new model of datebase device on wireless in Ghana.