The Adas: The Ada people celebrate the Asafotu festival, which is also call ‘Asafotufiam’, an annual warrior’s festival celebrated by Ada people from the last Thursday of July to the first weekend of August.

It commemorates the victories of the warriors in battle and it’s memorial for those who fought on the battlefield. To re-enact these historic events, the warrior’s attire in traditional battle dress and stage a mock battle. This is also a time for male rites of passage, when young men are introduced to warfare.

The festival coincides with the harvest cycle, when special customs and ceremonies such as purification ceremonies are performed. The celebration reaches its climax with a durbar of chiefs a colorful procession of Chiefs in palanquins with their retinue. They are accompanied by traditional military groups called ‘Asafo-Companies’ amidst drumming, singing and dancing through the streets and on the durbar grounds. At the durbar, greetings are exchanged between the chiefs, libations are poured and declarations of allegiance are made.