On December 20, 2025, identical twin sisters Ivy Yeboah Afrane Panin and Ivy Yeboah Afrane Kakra celebrated a rare joint wedding as they married Emmanuel Akwaboah Nti and Richard Obeng-Kyeremeh, respectively, at The Maker’s House Chapel, Destiny Arena, Atomic, Accra.
Ahead of the white wedding, family and close friends gathered on Friday, December 19, at the Ashongman Estates residence of Mr Anthony Obeng Afrane, the twins’ father, in Accra, to witness the traditional marriage ceremony of the twins and their spouses.
At the traditional wedding, only family members and a handful of close friends could easily tell the twins apart.
For everyone else, the colours of their kente gowns became the guide — Panin in green and Kakra in pink, with their spouses wearing matching colours.
For many guests, it was their first time witnessing a twin wedding and they could not resist capturing memorable moments from both the traditional and white ceremonies.
When this reporter interviewed the twin sisters at the Graphic Head Office in Accra last Tuesday, the first question was whether, while growing up, they had always planned to marry on the same day.
The sisters said that while they had always imagined marrying on the same day — inspired partly by their uncles, who are also twins and married on the same day about four decades ago — there was a period when they preferred separate weddings so each could enjoy her own special moment.
“I don’t know whether it’s because of our uncles, but we always thought of having our wedding together. Later, we wanted separate events. We thought, okay, when Panin is getting married, I’ll be her chief bridesmaid and when I’m getting married, she’ll be mine. At that time, we didn’t really want a joint wedding at all. Aside from that, we also wanted to have our own special days,” Kakra explained.
However, when their proposed wedding dates, in September and December, turned out to be close, their parents suggested a joint ceremony.
When the sisters agreed to have a joint wedding, they said the next step was to get their partners to buy into the idea.
While Panin’s fiancé accepted the idea quickly, it took some convincing to bring Kakra’s fiancé on board.
The next phase was the planning, which required all four of them to decide on the colours, décor, foods and other details together. The sisters admitted that planning was more hectic than they assumed.
“We had to go back and forth trying to settle on the colours. Colour was a big issue because we didn’t want too many colours. We were wondering how they would blend, especially pink and green, but later realised it wasn’t too much for us and it even looked more beautiful than we anticipated.
“We came up with an Excel sheet that we shared so the men could make inputs and edits wherever they wanted, especially with the finances. That way, we knew how much was going to food and how much to the venue, and they were really supportive throughout. They were even communicating about what attire they were going to wear and all of that.”
Living life separately
Three weeks after their wedding, the twins are adjusting to their “single” lives.
“I thought it was going to be easier at first, but I realised that the first night I spent with my husband, I was really sad. He kept asking me what was wrong; he thought I didn’t like the place or that something was wrong. I had to explain to him that I had just realised I wasn’t with Kakra. We had always slept on the same bed and suddenly I wasn’t — it hit me,” Panin said on adjusting to their separate lives.
Before the wedding, Kakra had thought about the challenges of living apart from her twin. She reassured herself, however, knowing that they still worked together and would see each other every day at the office.
“We were typical, typical twins,” they said with laughter. “Our mum always dressed us the same. So dressing alike has been our life since we were born.”
Their mother herself is a twin and their grandmother gave birth to two sets of twins (their mum and her late sister and their uncles who had a joint wedding years ago).
The sisters attended the same schools throughout their lives, only separated briefly in primary school so teachers could tell them apart. From the Archbishop Porter Girls’ SHS in Takoradi, Western Region, to the Central University, then the University of Ghana, they studied together. Today, they work at the same institution — in different units — and are currently in law school together.
Even their names cause confusion. Both sisters share the same name, Ivy Yeboah Afrane, distinguished only by “Panin” (elder) and “Kakra” (younger).
Even for their partners, it took a while to tell them apart.
“In the beginning, before we started dating, he couldn’t tell us apart easily. It was really difficult — he would sometimes call me ‘Panin’ and then laugh, but over time, as he got to know me better, it became easier,” Kakra said.
“I think the key is spending time with just one of us; eventually, you learn the differences and can tell us apart,” Panin added.
Plans
The twin sisters hope to complete law school and pursue full-time careers in law. When asked whether they planned to have children around the same time, they both laughed, calling the idea “too weird.”
They explained that one part of their lives they keep private from each other is their sex life, so discussing ovulation and intimacy to time pregnancies would never happen.
They both, however, hoped to have twins themselves, continuing the family tradition.
Lasting memories
Their father, Mr Afrane, said seeing his two daughters get married on the same day is a moment he will cherish forever.
“Tears of happiness streamed down my face as I watched them, not as children anymore, but as strong, independent women ready to build their lives with the men they love. It was a day of dreams realised, a culmination of hopes and prayers and a celebration of the extraordinary bond that both my daughters shared.”
“The presence of so many esteemed guests, including the President of the World Organisation of Writers (WOW), Margarita AL from Russia and Prof. Akua Britwum, the Chair of the National Media Commission (NMC), only amplified the sense of the occasion. I felt honoured and humbled that they would share in our family’s joy.
“From the heartfelt speeches to the lively reception, every detail was infused with love and laughter. It was, without a doubt, the most magical day of my life, a day I will cherish forever.”
