Kaboli
was founded by Odé Amoun, a hunter from Nigeria,
nine generations ago. Odé Amoun came to the
area two times a year to hunt. The area is
on the top of a hill and was surrounded by
dense forest, therefore he thought is was
a good and safe place to stay. To test this,
he left two chickens - a rooster and a hen
- with these words, "if this is good
land, then when I return there will be many
chickens here." After about six months,
Odé Amoun returned and saw there were nine
chickens. He decided to stay and made his
home further down the hill at a spot where
a small creek attracted wildlife life buffalo
and elephants. This spot and Ita Gingelé,
where he left the two chickens, are sacred
to the village. Ita Gingelé is regarded as
the home of the village ancestors and is the
site of the Yam Festival every other August.
After Odé Amoun settled, he made another trip
to Nigeria and brought more people with him.
Today,
the nieghborhoods of the town are named after
the nine original founders who followed the
hunter to the area.
Kaboli is a large town with a population over
13,000. Kaboli is located on a major crossroads
between the central regions of Togo and Benin.
As a result, the town is a major trading center
for agricultural commodities. Every Saturday
there is a large market, with trucks and traders
coming from major towns in both Benin and
Togo to trade for bulk foods, including maize,
sorghum, beans, peanuts, manioc, and yams.
Livestock and agricultural implements are
also traded in this market.
Kaboli
and the surrounding area are known in Togo
for shea nuts and shea butter. Agbanga Karite
Group has several nut gathering and storage
centers in Kaboli.
Kaboli
is also well known for its Yam Festival, held
every other August. The Yam Festival celebrates
the history of the town and gives thanks to
the ancestors for the yam harvest.
See
pictures of Kaboli in our Central
Region slide show
Back
to the tour of Togo page
