All roads lead to ancient city of Ile-Ife, the source and ancestral home of the Yorubas and the entire Oodua Race worldwide, as the Ooni of Ife, Arole Oodua Olofin Adimula, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, will on Friday 25th February, 2022, declare Aje Heritage & Economic Summit open to kickstart this year’s edition of the annual Global Aje Festival.
Ooni’s Spokesman and Chairman of Aje Festival Media Committee, Otunba Moses Olafare made this known via a press release on Tuesday, explaining that Princess Dr. Toyin Kolade the Iyalaje Oodua Worldwide who doubles as Global Ambassador of Aje Festival is leaving no stone unturned as she has been working assiduously coordinating the Aje Festival Committee and all machineries put in place towards making the forthcoming festival the best of its kind.
Aje Festival 2022, a 4-day event festival which would hold in phases, will begin with The Aje Heritage & Economic Summit slated to hold at the Ojaja Arena located inside the Ife Grand Resort in Ile-Ife where Aje Festival Exhibition will also be unveiled to run daily for 4 days.
Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th February 2022 will be for Aje Music Fiesta and Aje Movie Screening respectively while Monday 28th February will climax all the activities lined up for the 2022 Aje Festival.
The Ooni’s Spokesman in the press statement acknowledged the efforts of the committee members for their relentless efforts, assuring that this year’s edition tagged “Aje Festival Reloaded” promises to be a tourist delight, investors delight and above all —full of education and entertainment.
“Aje Heritage & Economic Summit comprensively highlights the investment environments, investment policies, investment projects and cooperate products in all Oodua states of Nigeria, it will attract chambers of commerce from across Oodua-land to conduct investment briefings.
“Together with other members of the Aje Festival Committee, the trio of Yinka Odeajo(Event & Planning), Duchess Bolaji(Committee Secretary) and Otunba Ayo Olumoko(Sponsorship & Promotions) are sleeplessly working to organize a summit that offers optimum opportunity for business people of home and abroad to get a first hand information on the investment climate in Oodua-land offering them one-stop shopping services for multilateral investment cooperation,thereby helping them select from the wildest range of investment projects and business partners.” Otunba Olafare said.
According to the statement, the final part of the Annual Aje Festival 2022 holding on Monday 28th February will be in 3 sessions; The first traditional procession of Aje Olokun by the women of Woye Asiri from Ilero, Osangangan Obamakin’s compound to pay traditional obeisance to the Ooni at the Ile-Oodua Palace, from where they will proceed to the Aje Temple located right inside ancient Ejigbomekun market also known as Oja Ife.
Afterwards, the Woye Asiri women will then leave the Aje Temple for the Yeyemolu Sacred Well Water located within the Ooni’s Palace for further spiritual rites.
The peak of all activities for the day is the iconic procession of Aje groups which would be led by the Arole Oduduwa, Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi Ojaja II, in company of members of the Ife Traditional Council, monarchs across the world and the Iyalaje Oodua, Princess (Dr.) Toyin Kolade, among many others.
“Ooni Ogunwusi hereby invites the entire lovers of culture and tradition globally to the Annual Aje Festival under the able coordination of the Aje Global Ambassador, Princess Dr. Toyin Kolade, the Iyalaje Oodua Worldwide who leaves no stone unturned working day and night coordinating the Committee and all machineries put in place by the Arole Oduduwa for a superlative edition of Aje Festival.” Otunba Olafare said.