The Argungu Fishing and Cultural Festival is a centuries-old four-day festival in Kebbi state, in the north-western part of Northern Nigeria. Historical accounts indicate that the festival started in the 16th century and was officially formalized in 1934.
The festival runs between late February and March near the Matan Fada River featuring the much-loved kabanci – a series of water competitions including hand fishing, canoe racing, agriculture exhibition, swimming, wild duck catching – as well as other traditional practices, such as the local style of wrestling and boxing.
Men and boys participate in the contests, while women act as cheerleaders providing motivation and support by performing songs and dances during the festival. Tourists from all over the world travel to Argungu to witness the festival.
The grand finale is the fishing competition which begins on the final day by over 5000 fishermen and women gathering close to the river. Once the start sound is heard, they dive into the river to hunt for the biggest fish. Gourds made of the calabash and traditional nets are used as fishing equipment while some chose to hunt with their bare hands to show their prowess. Modern fishing equipment is not allowed.
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They are joined in the river by canoes filled with drummers, while some men rattle huge seed-filled gourds to drive the fish to shallow waters. At the end of the fishing period which usually lasts for about an hour, the biggest fishes are weighed to determine the largest fish. In 2005, the winning fish weighed 75 kg, and it took four men to lift it onto the scales. The owner of the largest fish is awarded a significant cash prize. The winner can take home as much as two million naira.
In February 1977, the Argungu Fishing Festival was organized as a major side event of immense cultural value. Cultural troupes and Heads of Missions of most nations that attended FESTAC ‘77 attend the Festival. As a unique and well-attended festival by dignitaries across Nigeria and Africa which included Heads of States, Presidents, Royal fathers, and ambassadors the festival contributed to the infrastructural and socio-economic growth of Argungu town and its environs. It brought national and international recognition, for the Argungu Emirate, Sokoto and Kebbi States and for Nigeria as a whole.
The festival marks the end of the growing season and the harvest. One mile (1.6 kilometers) stretch of the Argungu River is protected throughout the year so that the fish will be plentiful for this 45-minute fishing frenzy. Skills involved in festival activities are transmitted to younger generations formally and informally.
Training occurs, for example, via apprenticeship particularly in the case of specific fishing techniques or within families by demonstration. Knowledge is passed from the chieftaincy-holding families; the Sarkin Ruwa, who manages the river’s sanitation levels and the Homa (chief of the Argungu fishermen) who manages the river’s water quality and fish stocks, has been a principal factor in the festival’s continuity.
The Emir of Argungu, Alhaji Samaria Mohammed Merra announced that the Argungu Fishing Festival has been programmed to take place anytime this year, ten years after it was suspended and we are all excited.
The Argungu festival has been celebrated over sixty times since its inception. In 2016, UNESCO listed the Argungu Fishing and Cultural Festival on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and the only one of its kind in Nigeria. The festival represents peace and unity. It is a melting pot where tradition and culture foster understanding and community belonging to wipe out hostility.
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