Dates for the Festival of African Arts and Culture, FESTAC Africa 2025, a week-long international festival have been announced at a ceremony held in Accra earlier this week.
Celebrating African culture and heritage, it has been held only five times since its inception in 1966, with the sixth edition scheduled to be staged here in Ghana.
Slated for September 21 to 27, FESTAC Africa 2025, which celebrates the richness of African culture and fosters unity across the continent, is expected to attract some 100,000 patrons.
Significantly, it will showcase music, fine art, literature, drama, dance and religion, highlighting the diverse artistic and cultural expressions of the African continent and its diaspora.
Featuring various activities – including daily performances with about 500 artists on stage at about 10 venues, this year’s episode which focuses on ‘Re-imagining the African Renaissance’ will seek to position Accra as the epicentre of a continental renaissance rooted in Pan-African ideals, cultural pride and sustainable development.
Speaking at the launch ceremony, Engr. Yinka Abioye, Chairman of FESTAC Africa, declared: “FESTAC Africa 2025 is not just an event but the heartbeat of a rising continent. Ghana stands ready not only to host, but to unite Africa in spirit, purpose and pride. From the land of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, a new Africa shall rise. Ghana is the echo that will unite the continent”.
The selection of Accra as host city holds deep historical and symbolic resonance. The festival’s opening date, 21st September, coincides with the birth anniversary of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first President and an iconic Pan-Africanist.
The closing day, 27th September, aligns with World Tourism Day, highlighting the potential of culture and tourism as drivers of economic transformation.
The 2025 theme, ‘Harnessing Health, Culture, Trade, Climate Change, Gender Equity and Tourism for Sustainable Economic Growth’, underscores the festival’s commitment to a multidimensional African agenda.
By integrating cultural celebration with dialogue on health, economic development, gender inclusion and environmental responsibility, FESTAC Africa seeks to shape a bold and unified future for the continent.
A cross-border road carnival of about 1,000 participants from Nigeria through Benin and Togo to Ghana, with about 500 musical and cultural performances will kick-start the festival, with various durbar of chiefs at palaces across the country and visits to historical sites setting the stage for an exciting week.
FESTAC Africa was first held in Dakar, Senegal, in 1966. FESTAC 77 the second, held in Lagos, Nigeria from January 15 to February 12, 1977, has been the most popular.
It was a culmination of various gatherings exploring African and African-derived culture. Participation for that one topped around 16,000 participants from 56 African nations and countries of the African Diaspora.
Subsequently, it has been held in Zanzibar, Tanzania, in 2022; in Arusha, Tanzania in 2023; and Kisumu, Kenya in 2024.
