Badagry Festival

Badagry Festival is an annual event held in Badagry, a town in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is organised by the African Renaissance Foundation (AREFO). The event reflects the significance of the ancient town during the slave trade era. It is a convergence of culture and display of African heritage. The organizer brings the indegine and culture-loving fans from around the world to celebrate the festival. One of the major highlights is the artistic display by masquerades, dancers, and fire eaters. It features football competition, the beating of Sato drum, and Liberation Day Celebration.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]

Badagry Festival
Statusactive
GenreFestivals
BeginsAugust
EndsAugust
FrequencyAnnually
Location(s)Badagry, Lagos State
CountryNigeria
Previous eventAugust 2015
Next eventAugust 2016
LeaderOba Akran
Organised byAfrican Renaissance
SponsorMTN
Websitewww.badagryfestival.com

History

The festival was initiated in 1999 to commemorate the end of the slave trade era and the significance of the ancient city during the period.

The 2015 Badagry festival was tagged[9] "Toussaint L'Ouverture: The Catalyst for the struggle for liberation of the black". The event started on 20 August and ended on 30 August 2015. The festival creates a platform in Nigeria of those from the African diaspora to reunite with their motherland.[10] It was held at Badagry Grammar School, Badagry, Lagos, Nigeria.

City slave history

The name Badagry derives from the means of livelihood of the indigenous people of the city, which include fishing, farming, salt making. However, others believe the city was named after Agbada, a popular farmer, whose farm was named Agbadagrimeh, which was later pronounced Badagry by the Europeans.[11]

In the early 18th century Badagry served as a route for the Europeans when slaves were transported to the new destination of their buyers. It houses the cenotaph "Point of No Return",now called Gberefu village,a place where the well was enchanted to ensure that slaves who drank from it forgot there destinations. At the end of the 18th century, Badagry was one of the routes that benefited from the recurrent battle between Portnovo and Dahomey for the movement of slaves.[12] Badagry was noted as the auction point for slaves captured during inter-village warfare.[13] In 1983, Chief Mobee was among the African chiefs who participated in the slave trade.

The first two-storey building was built in Marina, Badagry, in 1845.[14] Presently, the site is facing massive environmental degradation due to lack of maintenance by the government, as well as the activities of commercial tree fellers. The government of Babatunde Fashola in an effort to reignite the glory of the city has started the construction of Badagry Expressway project, commissioning of Badagry Marina project.[15][16][13][17]

See also

References
  1. Japhet Alakam (6 September 2015). "African Magic, masquerades end Badagry festival". Vanguard Nigeria. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  2. Japhet Alakam (31 August 2015). "2015 Badagry Festival: Calls for end to modern slavery in Africa". Vanguard Nigeria. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  3. Anote Ajeluorou (25 August 2015). "Badagry Festival 2015… uniting the Diaspora with motherland". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  4. PM News (31 August 2015). "Fanfare at Badagry Festival". Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  5. Premium Times (18 August 2012). "Annual Badagry Festival Begins". Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  6. Yinka Olatunbosun. "Lagos Black Heritage festival 2015 Beckons". Thisday News. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  7. Daily Independent. "badagry glimpse lagos famous tourist site". Kimberly Okonkwo. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  8. "World mayors hail Badagry festival". Vanguard News. 26 August 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  9. mybadagry.org. "Objective of Badagry Festival by Sewedo Balogun". viyhon awhanse. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  10. "Badagry Festival". my badagry. Archived from the original on 14 December 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  11. Kinberly Okonjwo. "Badagry Glimpse Lagos Famous Tourist Site". Daily Independent. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  12. Manuel Barcia (2014). West African Warfare in Bahia and Cuba. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  13. Damian C. Dike (2014). Both Sides of the Same Coin. ISBN 9781496982018.
  14. Lizzie Williams, Mark Shenley (2012). Nigeria. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  15. Abiose Adelaja (24 March 2014). "Badagry Slave Route faces environmental degeneration". Prime Time. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  16. Phillip Curtin. The African Slave Trade. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 314. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  17. Olivier Pétré Grenouilleau. From Slave Trade to Empire. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.