By Peter Omopo
Osogbo, Osun State — August 8, 2025 — Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has pledged to address lapses within the Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove and carry out renovations ahead of the 2026 edition of the world-renowned festival.
Speaking at the grand finale of the 2025 Osun-Osogbo Festival on Friday, Adeleke, represented by his deputy, Kola Adewusi, assured stakeholders of his administration’s commitment to preserving and enhancing the historic site.
“The festival is not strange to us, as it has been recognised globally, and my administration will work on all lapses identified with the grove,” the governor said. “We will do the needful, especially the rehabilitation of the road leading to the grove.”
Adeleke also commended all stakeholders for their contributions to the successful hosting of this year’s celebrations, praising the Ataoja of Osogbo, Oba Jimoh Olanipekun, for his leadership and promising continued government support for the festival.
In his response, Oba Olanipekun lauded the governor for prioritising the cultural heritage of Osogbo and for showing greater interest in the annual celebrations.
This year’s festival, which began on July 28, climaxed with the symbolic procession of the Arugba — a virgin maiden carrying a sacred calabash — to offer sacrifices to the river goddess.
The Osun-Osogbo Festival, with roots tracing back centuries, is celebrated in the sacred grove on the outskirts of Osogbo between July and August. The grove, one of the last surviving sacred forests adjoining Yoruba cities before rapid urbanisation, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005 for its global cultural significance.
For the people of Osogbo, the annual celebration is more than a spectacle — it is a spiritual cleansing of the land and a cultural reunion with their ancestors and the founders of the Osogbo Kingdom.
