Story: Mohammed A. Abu
The 3rd Day funeral rites of Dagbon’s 41st and late King, His Royal Majesty, ndan Yaa Naa Mahama Abukari II ended in Yendi,the seat of Kingship, in the Northern Region of the Republic of Ghana, with an official announcement that the 7th Day rites is scheduled be held on July,24 2026.
Alhaji Yakubu Musah, the PRO to the late King who made the announcement on behalf of the Regent,Kampakoya Naa Yakubu Abukari and Elders, also disclosed that the day of the formal outdooring of the Regent is also to be made known during the said upcoming second funeral rites day.
He also thanked and appreciated the guests from all walks of life who were able to make it to Yendi from various parts of the country..
His Royal Majesty,Yaa Naa Mahama Abukari II
Development Initiatives
The seven-year reign of the Lion King has been characterized by multifaced development efforts endeavours approach. He will go down in history as one of the contemporary day Dagbon’s Kings whose peace, unity, togetherness and pragmatic action for development-oriented leadership trajectory would not only serve as a befitting legacy after him, but it also offers, a Blue Print for changing the Dagbon narrative.
Gains made by Corporate Dagbon since the coronation of the Lion King in 2019 up till his demise, tends to establish one fact. Moving on, Dagbon needs a more collective resolve and commitment towards stamping out all forms of divisiveness so it can leverage the collective strength of the good people of the Kingdom for better development impact and shared prosperity.
Greatness of a King isn’t simply measured by how long he had reigned but how best he had served his people to the best of his human ability during his tenure of Kingship and what legacy he leaves that endures and resonates with his people after him.
Peace and Reconciliation
He successfully executed the directives of the Committee of Eminent Chiefs, contained in the Dagbon Roadmap bridging the historic divide between the Abudu and Andani royal gates to facilitate regional stability.
Development Initiatives
Under the auspices of late Yaa Naa Mahama Abukari II, a number of Dagbon development initiatives undertaken were primarily centered on institutional peacebuilding, regional infrastructural investments, and cultural revitalization not limited to the following:
Institutional Unity
The Dagbon Constitutional Review Committee was launched in January 2021 by the King, to review the report of the colonial British government’s 1930 Dagbon Constitution conference. The essence of the Dagbon Constitution Conference of 1930—held in Yendi by the British colonial administration in the Gold Coast—was to systematically document and codify the unwritten customary laws, history, and political structures of the Dagbon Kingdom
The Committee was tasked to review the decades long colonial document which was actually a report on the conference and not a Dagbon Constitution document per say.Drawing from its contents,a first draft was done and circulated among stakeholders for their review for comments,suggestions and that resulted into the coming out of ,a final modified and upgraded draft version which was adopted as the first ever written Dagbon Constitution and currently pending promulgation.
Dagbon Development Fund (DDF)
On March 7,2023 the Dagbondevelopmentfund.org.gh system developed by COLDSiS, a Software Engineering company in Accra was launched in Yendi.
The former Governor of bank of Ghana (Dr. Issahaku Nashiru) and the founder and Managing Director of Rahma Company Ltd( Mr. Abdul-Rahman Al-Hassan where with the COLDSiS team in Yendi for the launch of the fund.
The purpose of the system was to have a centralized database of all Dagbon communities, and also seek to raise an initial amount of One Hundred and Fifty million Ghana Cedis (GHC150 million).
The target capital was deployed to achieve the following purpose: Reconstruction & Modernization of the Gbewaa Palace; Reconstruction & Modernization of Dagbon Traditional Council.
Relief to Volta Flood Victims
He provided royal support and relief packages for victims of the 2023 Volta Floods
The items, which included 400 bags of maize and 100 bags of rice, were to help alleviate the plight of the victims who have been displaced by the floods occasioned by the spillage of the Akosombo dam.
Gbewaa Palace Redevelopment
On the back of the launch of DDF came a sod-cutting ceremony for the redevelopment of the Gbewaa Palace in Yendi on 17th December, 2024.
The project forms part of a 10-year strategic development plan for Dagbon. The new palace would comprise various structures and facilities, including the office of the Dagbon Traditional Council.
He actively championed and oversaw the reconstruction of the seat of the Dagbon Kingship. During the Sod-Cutting ceremony, he advised citizens of Dagbon to prioritise the education of their children, including enrolling them in vocational schools to learn skills of their choice to better their lot.
Making a clarion call for peace and unity he said, “our common enemy is poverty which we must join hands to fight to ensure prosperity for both current and future generations”.
The project reached more than 95% completion and he was expected to have taken up residence in the palace by September ahead of this year’s Damba Festival but Allah his Creator thought otherwise.
Visit to Turkey
In July,2024, the King led a 10-day trip to Turkey during which he brokered a collaboration partnership between Tamale Technical University and Bursa Technical University in Turkey.
The trip also served as an external investment drive to present Dagbon’s unique selling points to potential Turkish investors with particular reference to the Kingdom’s immense arable land potential which offers agribusiness investment opportunities amidst the recent commencement of exploratory well drilling in the Voltaian Basin onshore oil prospect that includes part of Dagbon.
Religious and Social Harmony
Interfaith Cooperation: Actively allocated lands for both Islamic and Christian developments—including Catholic churches, a major seminary, and the Yendi Peace Centre—fostering deep religious tolerance.
National Project Advocacy
He was passionate about engaging with governments to fast-track essential infrastructural projects, including the Yendi and Tamale Water Projects, and the expansion of the Tamale International Airport.
In March 2025,President John Dramani Mahama during his visit to the Gbewaa Palace, had announced the commencement of work on the Yendi and Tamale water expansion projects to address the perennial acute water shortage in the two areas in the Northern region.
President Mahama, had assured Yaa Naa of a new hospital for Yendi and upgrade the Tamale Central and the Tamale Municipal hospitals to enhance health care for the people.
Religious and Social Harmony
He cherished Interfaith cooperation and peaceful co-existence and to ensure that, he allocated lands to both Muslim and Christian organization for the construction of mosques as well as, construction of Catholic churches, seminaries and with particular reference to the Yendi Peace Centre—fostering deep religious tolerance.
Lasting Legacy: The late Yaa Naa Mahama Abukari II was widely recognized for championing religious tolerance, with a firm positing that, all faiths thrive as spiritual and community development pillars.
The best tribute the good people of Dagbon and their next King to be, could pay to their late King, is to ensure continuation from where he had left by forging a common front, harnessing corporate Dagbon’s collective strength for shared prosperity and development moving forward.
He left indelible footprints on the sand of time. Fare thee well Lion King.
