Houston Set to Host INC-USA Convention 2027

Houston, Texas will host the 3rd National Convention of the Itsekiri National Congress, USA (INC-USA), the largest gathering of Itsekiris in the United States, over the Labor Day weekend of September 3 to 5, 2027.

The Itsekiri National Association, Houston Chapter (INA Houston), led by its President, Mr. Lovelance Sagay, formally accepted the hosting at the Sunday picnic that closed the Congress's 2nd National Convention in San Francisco, before members gathered from chapters across the country. He was joined for the acceptance by Mrs. Olubunmi Parker Shokoya, a Matron of the Congress.

Addressing members, Mr. Sagay said the Houston community was prepared and eager to

receive the Congress, and invited Itsekiri families from every part of America to make the journey to Texas.

“Houston is ready to host Itsekiris.”

— Mr. Lovelance Sagay, President, INA Houston

Mr. Sagay leads the host chapter alongside its Vice President, Princess Bose Okonedo, PhD, MSN, RN, and the chapter enjoys the counsel of a Patron of the Congress resident in the city, Engr. Fred Boyo. The chapter also honours its former President, Mr. Moyo Edema, who led INA Houston before him and remains one of its most respected voices. Together with the elders of the Houston Itsekiri community, they will receive the Congress in 2027:

Houston has long been a home for Itsekiri families in America. The energy industry that links the city to Warri has drawn engineers, technicians and professionals from Iwere Land to Texas over many years, and with them came the churches, naming ceremonies, weddings and family gatherings through which the Houston community has kept Iwere alive far from home. Its elders have welcomed newcomers and guided the young for a generation, and the 2027 convention will be, in every sense, a visit to their house.

Engr. Fred Boyo has been part of the work of building a national Itsekiri body in the United States since its inception in 1996, and remains one of the Congress's most faithful counsellors. In his goodwill message to the 2026 convention he set out the standard the Congress holds itself to:

“The National body should remain strong, neutral and transparent. This is a new dawn in Iwere land. The future is bright.”

— Engr. Fred Boyo, Patron, Itsekiri National Congress, USA

"We look forward to being their guests"

The National President of the Congress, Mr. Otse Amorighoye, welcomed Houston's acceptance.

“Houston has always opened its doors to Itsekiri families arriving in America. When Mr. Sagay stood before our members in San Francisco and accepted to host us, everyone there knew the Congress would be in good hands. We are grateful to him, to his executive, to our Patrons and Matrons and to the elders of Houston, and we look forward to being their guests.”

— Mr. Otse Amorighoye, President, Itsekiri National Congress, USA

Houston is the third city in the Congress's young history as a convention host, after Miami in 2025 and San Francisco in 2026, where the 2nd National Convention was hosted by the Itsekiri Association of Northern California under Chief Williams Ejuwa. The city was chosen for its central location, within easy reach of every chapter, and for its large Nigerian community.

What Houston 2027 will look like

The weekend will follow the pattern members have come to expect: a Friday welcome reception, a Saturday of sessions, business and the General Assembly, a Gala Night with red carpet, dinner, awards and live entertainment, and a Sunday gathering in the host city. It will also report on the Congress's work at home, including the telehealth centres it runs with the Roli Mabo Foundation in Ugbege and Jakpa. Registration and hotel details will be published at itsekirinationalcongress.org/convention, and the Congress will issue invitation letters to members and their families travelling from Nigeria.

Once a year, Itsekiri America comes home to itself — the coral beads, the aso-ebi, the red carpet, the elders and the babies, the Gala Night and the business of the nation, all in one room. Miami in 2025. San Francisco in 2026. Houston, Texas, September 3–5, 2027, hosted by INA Houston. The largest gathering of Itsekiris in the United States — and, for those who come, the weekend that carries them through the year. Registration and hotel details: itsekirinationalcongress.org/convention. Invitation letters are issued to members and their families travelling from Nigeria.

If you are Itsekiri in America and you were not in San Francisco, you were missed. Every Itsekiri son, daughter and spouse in the United States has a chapter waiting — Northern California, New York/New Jersey, Houston, Dallas, Florida (Miami), Chicago, Washington

DC/Maryland/Virginia, Colorado, and members-at-large everywhere else. This is where your people are, and there is a place kept for you before Houston.

Reading this in Nigeria? Your brother, sister, child or cousin in America should be in these photographs next year. Send this to them. Everything the Congress does for Ugbege, Jakpa, Koko and Warri is done by members — the more of ours who belong, the more Iwere Land gets built.

Doctors and nurses — the telehealth programme needs you. INC-USA is recruiting physicians, nurses, pharmacists and other licensed health professionals — in Nigeria and abroad — to consult remotely with patients at the Ugbege and Jakpa centres. The need is real and growing — give whatever hours you can, on a rota that fits your practice. Itsekiri or not, if you are licensed and willing, call +1 (779) 771-6151 and ask for the Health Initiative.

Take your place: visit itsekirinationalcongress.org and click "Join a Chapter" · call +1 (779) 771-6151 · email info@itsekirinationalcongress.org · or message the Congress on Facebook and Instagram at @itsekirinationalcongress. Or contact the president of the chapter nearest your family:

Your chapter and its president

About the Itsekiri National Congress, USA. INC-USA represents the Itsekiri diaspora across the United States: one Congress, eight regional chapters, one purpose. A 501(c)(3) organization, its mission is cultural preservation, community empowerment, education and leadership development, and partnerships that deliver measurable impact in Iwere Land. Programmes include the INC Health Initiative telehealth centres in Ugbege and Jakpa, the annual community food drive, scholarships and youth mentorship. Members join through their regional chapter. www.itsekirinationalcongress.org · info@itsekirinationalcongress.org · +1 (779) 771-6151 (calls only).