International Congress For Ifa/Orisa Spiritualists Demands Government Recognition, Support For Faith-Tourism

…Says Ifa Can Solve Insecurity, Economy Issues 

As part of the commemoration of the 2024 World Ifa day celebration, holding in Ekiti State, the President of the International Congress for Ifa/Orisa Spiritualists (ICIOS), Chief Solagbade Popoola has called on the government to recognize it’s relevance, and support faith tourism for revenue generation in the Country, saying that the Country is filled with spiritual treasures that could attract tourists.

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Speaking with journalists at the State Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists in Ado Ekiti on Friday, the Ekiti State Capital, the President was represented by the Ogun State Secretary of ICIOS, Oluwo Ifaniyi Awoyemi said by recognizing the Ifa Tradition, it can render an official recognition to the religion, creating a new revenue stream for the country, while sharing local and rich spiritual heritage to the world. 

Similarly, the General Secretary of ICIOS, Akomolafe Wande, said that faith-based tourism has proven to be a lucrative source of income for several countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Israel, and India, while lamenting that the lack of appreciation for indigenous spiritual practices in Nigeria has diminished home based faith.

Wande highlighted financial assistance provided by the Federal Government to other faiths, particularly the 2024 Hajj subsidy worth 90 billion Naira, emphasising that 10% of this amount could significantly benefit Ifa-Orise spirituality, potentially transforming the nation.

“Please we call on the government if they can give us 10% of what they have given to other Faith we have a big Faith-tourism here in Nigeria.”

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He also revealed “We are over 350 million World wide in the last 10 years people are moving to Ifa from the other religion, and in the next 10 years there will be more convert”

Also Speaking is Ayobami Ogedengbe-Arabia Awo of Oke egbe, who proposed introducing Ifa into national orientation, stating that its knowledge system can be employed to offer “supernaturally” empowerment for security Forces to address the country’s insecurity challenges.

Also he said, “We have to research Ifa medicines, all this can solve problems for us. So the government need to do something because the knowledge is rich. We represent the religion but there are other areas that can be explored.”

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Mrs. Fakankun Funmilayo, a lecturer at ICIOS, highlighted the advanced technology and spiritual treasures that Ifa encompasses,  “We have one of the most advanced technologies in Ifa, there are things we don’t know; there are things I didn’t know until I met Ifa, we have a lot of spiritual treasures in Osun State, Ogun State, and other part of the country.” She said.

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