Boki
Boki is one of the local government located in Cross River State in South South Nigeria. It is a peaceful but rural area. It shares boundary with Ogoja, Obudu,and Obanliku in the North and bounded with Cameroon to the East while the Western parts of the Area is bounded with Ikom and Etung. The local Government consist of 6 traditional clans Irruan, Osokom I, Osokom II, Boje, Eastern Boki and Abo. Boki has 11 political wards Buda, Njua/Borum/Oku, Alankwu, Bunyia/Okubuchi, Boje, Beebo-Bumaji, Buentebe, Ekpashi, Kakwagom/Bawop, Abo and Ogep Osokom.
Understand
Boki is a Local Government situated at Latitude 6°N and Longitude 9°E in Cross River State, Nigeria. The Area is one of the remaining locations on Earth with a terrain covered by a naturally grown Tropical Rain Forest which serves as the only forest that still have a good number of Drill Monkeys and contributes hugely to the Global quest for mitigating climate change issues in the region and outside the region. As one of the locations with fertile soil, Boki is known mostly for her primary activities of growing cash crops such as Cocoa, Plantain, Banana, Yams, Cassava, Pineapples, avocado, African pear etc. Boki Local Governement Area remains one of the best locations in Nigeria with sites that are good enough to attract your attentionfor pleasure and research purposes. A visit to Boki’s Afi Mountain, Drill Ranch, Buanchor Canopy Walk-Way, Kende Esua Lake, Njua Banor stone etc. will contribute more to your research and pleasuring purposes.
Get in
You can enter Boki from all the neighboring Local Government like Ogoja, Obudu, Obanliku, Ikom, Etung and Republic of Cameron. It is an hour drive from either of the locatios. The area is only accessible by road, so cars and bikes are the only means of transportation available as of 2023.
Get around
By bus
Moving from one community is done majorly by bus. Although the routes aren't too good. It takes approximately 10-15 minutes to get to the closest community and you might spend up to 3 hours to travel the whole lga.
By bike
This is another popular means of transportation although it's not really advisable for long distance journey in the lga. For journey between close communities, you would definitely need to use a bike.
See
- Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary (Drill Ranch), Buanchor Community. This is a wildlife conservation and they are focused majorly on the breeding of primates, namely drills and chimpanzees. There is also a canopy walk there. It's best to go during the dry season, cause the road isn't too good during rainy season.
You may also want to Visit Njua Banor rock, Governor's lodge at Boje, Canopy walkway at Buanchor, Kende Esua lake at Biajua, National park, Irruan Dam and Bishop's Sam cabin at Nkanyia Irruan.
Do
One of the major activities you can't afford to miss in Boki is their new yam festival. Boki like other African tribes,is known for different cultural festivals marking an historical occasions(mostly in appreciation for favourable and victorious experiences gotten out of past pandemics or crises faced by her Ancestors).
This is an annual festival in Boki marking the occasion of appreciating the supreme powers behind the provisionof Food especially yam for the Boki people. This festival takes place every year on the 18thday of August. Farmers harvest their yams from their various farms and display them in the village square to appreciate the wonders behind yam productivity and for the encouragement of farmers whose interest is to make food available for everyone in Boki. The festival is decorated with different cultural displays like Dance, Songs and attires representing the way of the people.
Alobe Festival.
Like the New Yam, this festival is also another occasion to mark the end of the greatest famine of all times. Unlike New Yam, this festival is being practiced inIrruan Clan of Boki Local Government Area. Irruanclan which is also known as “Erue” migrated from their original location into a new settlement due to some historical difficulties among the ancestors. As a result of wondering for a new home, the people were forced into a very dangerous famine which camealongside hunger, sickness and increased death outbreaks. The people suffered for long before being blessed with the gift of COCOYAM which is known as “"Kukuú oni korùn". History have it that the people ate this crop and survived the famine. The Alobefestival takes place between the months ofMay and June as the three groups that makeup the Clan celebrate the occasion on different dates in appreciation for the gift of Fruitfulness and survival.
Another major event is the cassava Like the New Yam and Alobe, the people of Buanchor in Buentsebe Clan of Boki are known for their culture of giving gratitude to the powers behind the productivity and availability of cassava in the Land of Boki. Cassava is one of the major sources of food in Boki due to it transformable nature of being processed into dry-powdering form called GARRI or Fufu which is another known Afican meal prepared among the Boki people using cassava. As a symbol of gratitude, the cassava festival is also an annual event that comes alongside different cultural and social activities displaying the breathtaking culture of the Boki nation.
Buy
The people of Boki are mostly farmers and only a few sells products outside farm produce. Like in every other locations, the Igbos are the main traders with a high concentration of buyers in Okundi Market.
Eat
Only local restaurants are available in this local government. Some of their local dishes you can try are
- Afang soup(also known as salad) with Akpu(fufu).
- Banga stew.
3. Bishuo soup
4. Kambue soup
5. Bokum soup
6. ekpang
7. Pounded yam
8. roasted corn and pear.
Drink
The popular drink you can get here is palm wine. You can get this at almost every joint in each community.
Sleep
As a rural area, Boki has just two hotels namely Kingsview Hotel at Ntamante Boki and Sakays Hotel located at Bunyia.
Outside the above mentioned Hotels, you can lodge in neighboring urban areas as Ogoja, Ikom and Obudu.
Connect
Boki has 40% network coverage. The Area still lacks widely coverage mobile network for phone calls and Browsing. Telecom companies like MTN, GLO, Airtel and 9mobile are scarcely present in Boki.
Boki as a Nation with large landmass and high population, mounting a Telecom mass to supply network won't be bad at all.
Dues to lack of electricity and network, the location has no radio station nor TV station at all.