By RAJI RASAK

Prof. Wole Soyinka, a Nigerian Nobel Prize Winner and Playwright, other tourists and culture enthusiasts from across the world are expected to attend 2025 Diaspora Festival in Badagry.

Addressing newsmen on Tuesday in preparation for the festival, Mr Babatunde Hunpe, Chairman, Badagry Local Government, said, on behalf of other chairmen in Badagry, that the festival would commence on Oct. 16 to Oct. 18.

Hunpe said that the three councils had decided to take over the celebration of the 2025 festival in collaboration with Africa Renaissance Foundation and the African Door of Return Experience.

He said that during the three-day cultural extravaganza, visitors would witness a spectacular display of African heritage through drumming, dance, cultural parades, boat regattas and historical re-enactments.

The chairman said that the event would also feature lectures, tributes and exhibitions that chronicle the resilience and contributions of Africans across generations.

Hunpe said the heart of the celebration would be the Door of Return Ceremony, a spiritually charged and emotional highlight where descendants of enslaved Africans symbolically retrace their steps home.

According to the chairman, this reenactment has over the years become a beacon of hope, pride and reconnection for Africans in the diaspora, showcasing Badagry as a central hub of Pan-African consciousness.

Also speaking, Mr Bonu Solomon, the Lawmaker representing Badagry Constituency 1 in Lagos State House of Assembly, said that Soyinka would lead the delegation down to Badagry.

Solomon who is the Chairman, House Committee on Tourism and Culture, said that they would be waiting to receive the delegation in Badagry.

“People from Cuba, Brazil and other European countries will be coming with Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) to Badagry.

“Tourists are already coming down, we have students from Ajegunle coming down here and they are tourists.

“What we need to do is just to uphold tourism to serve Badagry to the whole world.

“And with the zeal of the three chairman, that we have seen today, Badagry is going to be greater in the near future. Unity is what we want,” he said. (NAN)