ARAFEX-NCC Festival Village wows at Aboakyir
The Aboakyir festival of the people of Winneba, this year witnessed a trailblazing event; the launch of the ARAFEX-NCC Festival Village Concept.
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Designed and initiated by ARAFEX Group, a Ghanaian creative arts, heritage and tourism promotion unit with support from the National Commission on Culture (NCC) and the Ministry of Tourism, the village concept was the toast of the traditional setting at Adansi Park, Winneba, Old Town when the Aboakyir Festival came off last weekend.
The concept is an acre village built with a blend of indigenous African architecture and modern facilities. It is in essence a miniature chief’s courtyard wielding and showcasing all creative works: arts and craft, ceramics, traditional textiles, masquerades, asafo flags, costumes and traditional dance performances.
It was the centre of attraction and virtually a distinct feature of the entire Aboakyir festival which attracted patronage of government officials, traditional leaders, educational institutions, tourists, revellers among others.
Launching the village, the Minister of Chieftaincy and Culture, Mr Kofi Dzamesi, congratulated ARAFEX for the initiative. He observed the village concept is highly invaluable in terms of bright prospects it could bring to each traditional area, both socially and economically. He continued to pledge his ministry’s support and encouragement for the project.
The novel village concept is the precursor to a number of projects geared towards the preservation, promotion, restoration of cultural items and events, involving artifacts, festivals, lifestyles and stories of historical significance to the people of Ghana.
Among other things, the village heralds the process of documentation and highlighting of the significance of festivals/traditional events and their relevance to our modern society while happing on their commercial viability.
Creative and cultural works on display included pieces from the College of Creative Arts, University College of Education Winneba.
