No fewer than seventeen countries are expected to participate in this year’s Ilorin Emirate Grand Durbar Festival, scheduled to hold on Sunday, 9 June 2025, the third day of Eid-el-Kabir, at the Kwara Baseball Park, Adewole, Ilorin.
Chairman of the Ilorin Emirate Durbar Committee and Danmasani of Ilorin, Engr Suleiman Yahaya Alapansanpa, made this known while briefing journalists in Ilorin. He confirmed that guests and tourists from across the world have begun arriving for the weeklong cultural celebration.
According to Alapansanpa, countries expected to be represented include the United Kingdom, United States, France, Germany, Egypt, Morocco, Sudan, Niger Republic and Benin Republic, among others. He attributed the international appeal of the event to the goodwill of the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari.
The Durbar, he said, has become a globally recognised cultural attraction and now features prominently on the international tourism map. “This festival is more than a cultural event. It is a celebration of unity, peace and our enduring heritage,” he remarked.
He also announced that a number of prominent indigenes cultural ambassadors of Ilorin had signified their intention to participate in this year’s edition.
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Alapansanpa further explained the decision to move the Durbar from the forecourt of the Emir’s palace to the Kwara Baseball Park, saying it was a deliberate effort by the Emir to identify with his people and extend royal presence to other parts of the city.
The new venue, he said, would accommodate 1,000 invited guests and 2,000 members of the public under a structured pavilion system.
Dispelling concerns about pressure from government agencies, Alapansanpa maintained that the Durbar is wholly organised at the behest of the Emir, without government interference. “The event is a spiritual remembrance and a celebration of harmony under the wise leadership of the Emir,” he said.
Highlighting a key feature of this year’s celebration, he noted that the Emir would ride from Ita Ogunbo through Ita Kudimo to the Baseball Park a symbolic one-kilometre journey that reaffirms the community’s message of unity in diversity.
