Schools in the Yendi Municipality have reopened after a week-long suspension of academic activities to allow the Dagbon community to mourn the late Overlord of Dagbon, Yaa Naa Mahama Abukari II.
The reopening on Monday, July 20, marks the return of students and teachers to classrooms following the temporary closure of public and private schools across the municipality.
The schools were closed after the death of the Yaa Naa on July 12, which plunged Dagbon into mourning and led to a series of traditional rites and prayers in honour of the late monarch.
The temporary suspension of classes was intended to allow students, teachers and school administrators to participate in the mourning period and observe traditional customs associated with the death of the Dagbon Overlord.
With the third-day prayers held last Thursday, educational activities have now resumed, although the traditional mourning period for the late Yaa Naa continues.
Teachers have returned to their classrooms, while students are expected to continue with lessons and complete outstanding academic activities for the term.
The resumption comes at a critical point in the academic calendar, with basic schools across the country conducting end-of-term examinations ahead of the vacation.
School authorities are therefore expected to make adjustments to ensure that lessons and examinations affected by the week-long closure are adequately addressed before the end of the term.
The temporary closure had raised concerns among some parents and education stakeholders about the possible impact on the academic calendar.
However, the return to school is expected to help restore normal academic activities in the municipality.
The late Yaa Naa Mahama Abukari II’s funeral observances will continue in the coming days, with the seventh-day prayers scheduled for Friday, July 24.
The prayers are expected to attract traditional leaders, government officials, religious leaders and mourners from across Ghana.
While schools have resumed, the Dagbon Kingdom remains in an official period of mourning as traditional rites continue to honour the late Overlord, whose death has been widely described as a major loss to Dagbon and Ghana’s traditional leadership.
