“It is a great success thanks to the active mobilization of each son and daughter of Oké-Owo”

2023-08-23 00:13:21

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With the general supervisor at her side, Imelda Bada gives an update to the press

The curtains of the 3rd edition of the Zogben International Festival are closed on Sunday August 13, 2023, at Oké-Owo in the town of Savè. An edition marked by the influx of visitors and the real involvement of the central and decentralized State. This is what the promoter of the said festival, and president of the Association Partage Diaspora Beninoise Imelda Bada, told journalists, with at her side Doctor Agognon Gérard, supervisor of the organizing committee and secretary general of the association. residents and nationals for the development of Oké-Owo (AGROD), on Tuesday August 22, 2023, during a press conference in Cotonou.

What you should know : The Zogben International Festival is a traveling festival promoting the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). Far from being just a distraction pastime, it is a real driver of development. With its wide range of entertainment, this festival is the format of choice for cultivating cultural diversity and arousing surprise while encouraging responsible tourism. With audiences sometimes unaccustomed to art, who take advantage of the playful and relaxed side of the festival, discovering new practices, the International Zogben Festival serves to strengthen ties between communities by mobilizing the State, civil society and beneficiaries around a flagship event that knows how to mix populations. By making this edition effective, the promoter says she wants to seek to contribute to the development momentum launched by the government in PAG II, through culture and tourism. “With the Zogben International Festival, we will bring Beninese art and culture across borders, dispelling negative stereotypes and received ideas that are the real obstacles to our development,” said Imelda Bada. Convinced that the Beninese diaspora, which is the showcase of Benin in the world, has a lot to contribute, she hopes that the Head of State, President Patrice Talon, will allow more inclusion of this diaspora.

What to remember from the edition : Placed under the theme: “Intangible Cultural Heritage, an inexhaustible source of wealth”, under the sponsorship of Jacques Ayadji, this said festival was open free of charge to the public on the football field. For three days, the land of Oké-Owo vibrated to the rhythm of the intangible cultural heritage of Benin. Thus, several events including heritage dances with the assistance of the artistic troupe TONANSÉ, contests, local gastronomy, cultural events, tourist circuits in Savè, the local products market, furnished the event. Thus, several typical Beninese dishes were offered to festival-goers. These are precisely Agbeli, Atachichi, Bèhoudji, Avoumi, Kouklui, Ataklê, Kleke, Konkada, Grated Coco, Talétalé, Ata, Tévi, Abla, Abloyoki, Akandji, Bokoun, Andou, etc. The festival saw the massive participation of political and administrative authorities, crowned and wise heads of the locality, who enhanced the event.

What the actors say “It’s a great success, thanks to the active mobilization of each son and daughter of Oké-Owo,” said promoter Imelda Bada and president of the Association Partage Diaspora Beninoise. She paid tribute to the people of Oké-Owo and greeted the government of President Talon, whose ministers of development, energy, public security and health particularly played their part in celebrating this celebration of culture. and the promotion of the Benin destination. She did not fail to say a thank you to the Director General of the Republican Police for mobilizing his units for the safety of festival-goers in Oké-Owo, a border village in Nigeria. Doctor Agognon Gérard, secretary general of the association of residents and nationals for the development of Oké-Owo (AGROD) and supervisor of the organizing committee of the said festival, welcomed the organization in Oké-Owo of the said festival which was a real opportunity for mixing between the Beninese of the interior and their brothers in the diaspora on the one hand, and on the other hand, an exceptional opportunity for its development association, the AGROD of Oké-Owo and the entire population to take advantage of this international activity to increase their visibility and find some solutions to their development problems. Representing Minister Bio Tchané at this conference, Eudoxie Bessan Ayédoun, Technical Advisor for the Economy at the Ministry of Development and Coordination of Government Action, stressed that this initiative is in line with the PAG, particularly in its pillar 2 , which is the structural transformation of the economy and more specifically on strategic axis 4 “acceleration of economic growth”. Tourism on the background of the promotion of culture, she said, is an important lever for the structural transformation of the economy, in that it can be a source of development and diversification of the economy. And the PAG 2 devotes nearly 10% of the budget allocated to the axis “acceleration of culture and tourism”. This is why the government recognizes the cultural and patriotic interest of this festival, which, according to it, is strongly in line with the government’s desire to strengthen national unity around the historical landmarks of the Nation and to put cultural wealth at the fore. tourism and economic development department.

Between the lines : This festival was a real opportunity to feel the achievements of the Talon Government whose action program had a positive impact on Oké-Owo, a rural locality. On behalf of the General Association of Nationals of Oké-Owo for Development (AGROD). Hounvidé Séraphin expressed the admiration of the populations for the government’s promptness in carrying out the tarring of the Savè-Oké-Owo road and above all to restore its solar power plant, which had been out of order for 3 years, a few days before the event. He complains in the hope that this work will be completed by strengthening the energy supply with public lighting and especially the construction of the bridge over the Okpara at the height of Oké-Owo as well as others (drinking water needs , needs in the field of security: district police station, health center, etc.).

Presentation of the flame trophy to the General Supervisor, Dr. Agognon

Moreover : The Technical Advisor for the Economy at the Ministry of Development, Eudoxie Bessan Ayédoun has provided recommendations to the organizers for the next editions. She invited them to a follow-up process, to define an economic model capable of creating value for cultural wealth and to plan a sustainable circuit to measure the local economic impact through the cultural activities initiated. For their contribution to the success of this festival, the trophy of the flame was awarded to President Patrice Talon, to the Minister of State, Abdoulaye Bio Tchané, to the Ministers Samou Seidou Adambi and Alassane SEIDOU as well as to the sponsor of the edition , Jacques Ayadji. Several artists were also decorated for their contribution. Specifically, the AGROD development association awarded a certificate of recognition to the Minister of State, Abdoulaye Bio Tchané, for his effort to develop the village of Oké-Owo through the said festival. It should be noted that this edition was organized in collaboration with the General Association of Nationals of Oké-Owo for Development (AGROD). The 4th edition will be held at HOUEGBO–AGON, in Toffo in the Atlantic department.

Alban Tchalla