The Konor of Manya Krobo State, Nene Sakite II, has charged the chiefs and people of the area to consciously prioritise unity and peace as the most important ingredients towards building the State.
According to Chief, the journey to development starts with unity, hence it was imperative for all and sundry within and outside Manya to embrace peace and unity.
This was contained in a speech read on behalf of the Overlord of Manya Krobo by the Djasetse of the Manya Krobo Paramountcy, Nene Kpabitey Kwao III, during the 2023 Ngmayem Festival launched at Akuse.
The 2023 Ngmayem Festival celebration is scheduled from Saturday 21st October to Sunday 29th October 2023, under the theme “Development in Unity: Reviving Patriotism through Unification.”
Touching on the relevance of the theme for the celebration, the Overlord stressed: “Our strength lies in our ability to set aside our differences, build bridges, and work hand in hand for the betterment of our community.”
The theme was carefully chosen to reflect the collective desire of the people of Manya Krobo to continue to foster unity, good neighborliness, and renew kinship and ties to create the needed atmosphere for progress and development.
“Let us take a cue from this and rekindle that same spirit of unity, patriotism, and collaboration to help propel Krobo land to higher heights,” he emphasised.
The Ngamyem Festival was instituted by their forebears to celebrate the bountiful harvest of ‘Ngma.’ History has it that ‘Ngma’ was the staple food on which their forebears mainly survived, particularly during their sojourn amidst the many warfares from their earlier places of settlement to the present location, which has become the home of the Krobo people.
The people of Manya Krobo have come to be associated more with Ngmayem than any other group of people with the same or similar celebrations. ‘Ngmayem’ is a fusion of two terms, ‘Ngma’, which is the local name for millet, and ‘Yemi’, which is simply the Danmge word for the act of eating. It stands to reason, therefore, that Ngmayem means ‘the eating of millet.’
The Manya Krobo Traditional Area spans two political municipalities, namely, Lower Manya Krobo, with Odumase-Krobo as its capital, and which has notable communities such as Atua, Odumase, Kpong, and Akuse, among others, and the Upper Manya Krobo District, which has the ever-bustling commercial community of Asesewa as its administrative capital. Other notable communities in Upper Manya include Akateng, Sekesua and other communities.
The Deputy Minister for Tourism, Arts, and Culture, Mark Okraku Mantey, and all ministers of state present, the Members of Parliament for Upper Manya Krobo constituencies, the Municipal Chief Executive of Lower Manya Krobo, the District Chief Executive of Upper Manya Krobo, respected traditional leaders, members of the Clergy, chief executives from the business communities and other dignitaries from all talk of life supported the 2023 Ngmayem Festival launch.
Mark Okraku Mante, who represented the Minister and launched the festival, lauded the people of Manya Krobo for the continuous projection of their culture and urged them to continue forging on in unity.
“What we are doing today is very important to the government. President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s government wants to make tourism the number one contributor to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). At the moment, it is the number three contributor. If this target must be achieved, we will need our rich and colourful traditional festivals like Ngamyem to make it a reality,” he said.
Touching on the theme for the celebration, he noted that before any tourist visits any country, the first thing on the checklist that is ticked is how peaceful the country is.
He added: “Ghana is number three in Africa, in terms of peac,e and so it means that every region, traditional area, district, constituency or locality must be experiencing a degree of peace to help sell out tourism to foreigners.”
