A Nigerian fishing festival returns to the joy of the community, despite setbacks

Thousands of fishermen descended on the milky waters of the Matan Fadan River on Saturday, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that winds through lush vegetation in the northwestern Nigerian town of Argungu.

Several thousand spectators, including President Bola Tinubu, cheered them on as they competed to catch the biggest fish, even as security concerns kept some people away. Competitors used only traditional fishing techniques, such as hand-woven nets and large gourds. Some used their bare hands to demonstrate their skills.

The Kebbi State waterway was filled with woven nets and canoes as fishermen forded the river. This year’s winner caught a croaker fish weighing 59 kilograms (130 pounds). The winner receives a cash prize and other participants can sell their catch, boosting the local economy.

The small river is closed the rest of the year and maintained by a chief entitled Sarkin Ruwa, the head of water.

The fishing competition was the highlight of the annual international fishing festival, which included cultural events including traditional wrestling and music.

“I thank God for bringing something to eat for my family. I am very happy that I came,” Aliyu Muhammadu, a 63-year-old fisherman who participated in the competition, told the Associated Press.

The festival dates back to 1934, when nearly 100 years of hostility between the ancient Sokoto Caliphate – a sprawling 19th-century Islamic empire stretching from Nigeria to parts of present-day Burkina Faso – and a resistant Argungu emirate came to an end.

The peach festival is considered a symbol of unity and lasted for decades until it was discontinued in 2010 following infrastructure problems and growing insecurity in Nigeria’s northern region. The festival returned in 2020 but was suspended again until this year.

Nigeria is facing a complex security crisis, particularly in the north, which has experienced attacks for years that have left several thousand dead. These attacks have been blamed on fighters from Islamist insurgent groups and armed criminal groups. The attacks are now spreading to the southern region.

Tinubu said the festival is a return to stability, but for many the return of the festival restores a sense of community pride.

“Our challenge now is that people are afraid to come. Many people are not participating in the event like before because of insecurity,” Hussein Mukwashe, the Sarkin Ruwa of Argungu, told the Associated Press.