Traditional Authority

There are three Traditional Councils namely; Shama, Sekondi and Essikado.  The  Councils meet regularly to discuss issues affecting the development of the various communities. Council meetings are also used to settle chieftaincy disputes among the various families. The traditional councils thus serve as alternative source of settling disputes and a focal point for initiation and implementation of development projects.

Festivals

The Kundum festival is one festival which many people will love to witness in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis. It is organized in July to August every year. It relates to celebration of food harvest and serves an occasion for the communities and indigenes to strengthen their mutual bond for development. Kundum is celebrated by the people of the Metropolis – the Ahantas. Its origin is derived from a name of a ‘god’ called Kofi ‘Kundum’. 

This god is believed to have ancestral god of harvest. The festival was initiated by a Chief named Nana Owu Eduku. It is said that one Brempong Yaw later gave prominence and recognition to the festival. He introduce another fetish called ‘Asafua’, who, it is acknowledged, should first taste the produce from the annual harvest before any food is distributed for comsumption and marketing. Other minor festivals are held before the Kundum.   

Traditionally, the Metropolis has three paramouncies (Sekondi Traditional Council, Shama Traditional Council and Essikado Traditional Concil.). Nana Tsitsi Apo the Chief of Kansaworodo traditional area who is currently the acting paramount chief of Sekondi traditional area after the demise of the late Nana Ewua Duku II in 2000.  

The paramount Chief of Shama traditional area is Nana Kweku Binnah II. The people of Shama celebrate ‘Pra Nyinani Afahye’ which is organize in September of every year. (the history behind the festival ) Nana Kobina Nketsia V is the Paramount Chief of Essikado tradional area. He succeeded his late uncle Nana Kokina Nketsia IV. 
 

Brief History

Like most Local Authorities in the world SAEMA started from the humble beginning as the Sekondi Town Council on 1st October,1903 by a proclamation made in the then Gild Coast Colony. The proclamation was dated 15th September 1903 and was made under the Town Council Ordinance No. 26 of 1894.

The first meeting of the council was held on 6th March 1905 at Metropole Hotel, Sekondi with Mr Arthure J. Philbrock the then Western Province Commissioner as its President. There were three official and two unofficial members.

With the Takoradi Port being the sole maritime gateway to the Gold Coast, many distinguished personalities used to visit the Township of Takoradi. It was therefore considered expedient to to bring Takoradi, which s only six miles from Sekondi under the administrative wing of the Council.

In July 1943 a Committee Chaired by Mr. D.A. Sutherland then the President of the Sekondi Town Council was set up by the Commissioner from the Western Province to study the possibility of extending the Sekondi Town Council to include Takoradi. Following the submission of the committee’s report in April 1944, the Sekondi-Takoradi Town Council was established on 2nd December 1946.  

On 1st March 1954, the Tow Council was elevated to Municipality status under the Municipality Council Ordinance 1953. The new municipal Council’s meeting was declared open by Mr. E.O. Asafu-Ddjaye the then Minister of Local Government on 9TH March 1954. 

On Friday 18th April 1958 the then Minister of Local Government Hon A.E.A. Ofori-Atta officially commissioned the Council’s new building, which is currently used as the head office of the Metropolitan Assembly.

On 25th June 1962, Sekondi-Takoradi was elevated to City status through Executive Instrument No. 7 of 9th January 1965.  

In 1971 a new Local Government Act which sought to amalgamate smaller local council into larger local Government Units was introduced. By the Sekondi Takoradi District Council Establishment instrument 1974 (L.I. 890), the boundaries of Sekondi-Takoradi was extended to include Ahanta and Shama Local Councils which hitherto had operated as separate local government units.

Following the promulgation of PNDC Law 207, the Sekondi-Takoradi City Council was elevated to a new status as a Metropolitan Assembly with the official name as Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA). By the local government establishment Instrument 1995 (L.I. 1613), the Metropolis official name was changed to SHAMA AHANTA EAST METROPOLITAN ASSEMBLY (S.A.E.M.A) and is currently one of the four Metropolises in Ghana.

Tourism Attractions

The hospitality of the twin city is superb. People travel frequently from far and near to have a feel of the Ghanaian hospitality, which is even more pronounced in the twin city of Sekondi -Takoradi with its numerous tourist attractions. Heritage, culture, beach and ecology serve as tourism products. The city can boast of some of the finest beaches in the county and some of the oldest forts built by the Europeans..

These involve historical and scenic attractions, such as sandy and sunny beaches at Essipon (Paradise Beach), Essikado, Sports Club, Whin River Estuary and Essei Lagoon, as well as some factories, such as the Cocoa Processing Company and the edifices at European town. The second group involves events attractions, which come on at specific times for tourists. These include Kundum Festival, Sports Festivals and beach parties.

Finally, there are many top quality hotels and restaurants in the metropolis, and ever-growing demand for their services means there is room for more. Major tourism products on the drawing board, which can involve private sector participation, include a Railway Museum, a Regional Museum, a Sekondi Historic District Preservation Programme, Fort Orange and several other tourist facility improvements in Sekondi/