The Ikwo Noyo Clan of Ebonyi State has officially released the timetable for the 2025 edition of the Nnesweoha Festival, a deeply revered annual cultural event celebrating ancestral heritage, spirituality, and agricultural traditions.
In a public statement, Chief Joseph A. N. Orogwu JP (Ugo-Nnia), the National Public Relations Officer of the Ikwo Development Union (IDU), confirmed the festival will kick off on Tuesday, August 5, 2025, and span several days filled with traditional rites, sacred rituals, and communal celebrations.
2025 Nnesweoha Festival Timetable
Tuesday, August 5 — Igboji Ozuru-ola
The festival begins with Igboji Ozuru-ola, observed at Edukfu Noyo in Ekpeli. This day, also known as Oye Ose Ukpara, is recognized by both IDU and the Clan Council as the general day of celebration across the Ikwo Noyo region.
Wednesday, August 6 — Nnesweoha Cultural Day (Orie)
The most sacred phase of the festival. Led by the chief priest of Ili Noyo and Ndi Ozo title holders, ancestral rites are performed and symbolic meals are offered to the forebears. This solemn occasion sets off the traditional mourning period known as Ukata-apha le Unu-apha, during which burials and death announcements are strictly forbidden.
Friday, August 8 — Nchonu Ojinji
This significant day reaffirms the spiritual link between the living and their ancestors through elaborate rituals and cultural observances.
Saturday, August 9 — Eke Nwanekwa (New Yam Festival)
The grand finale of the Nnesweoha Festival. Eke Nwanekwa is a vibrant celebration of the year’s harvest and a renewal of community unity. Families and visitors gather to feast on new yams and participate in dances, songs, and thanksgiving.
Chief Orogwu urged all Ikwo sons and daughters especially those abroad to remain connected to their roots by participating in and passing down the Nnesweoha traditions.
“Let us not allow our culture to extinguish in our hands,” he said.
The Nnesweoha Festival continues to be a proud display of Ikwo Noyo’s cultural resilience, ancestral reverence, and communal identity uniting generations through shared tradition and celebration.
