By Shuaibu Zubair Tatu ,Birnin Kebbi
As the Rigatta cultural festival begins in Yauri, the Kebbi State Commissioner of Information and Culture, Alhaji Mamuda Muhammad Warra says Rigata festival has the potential of boosting Kebbi’s economy through the tourism sector.
The Commissioner stated this while delivering a keynote address at the opening of cultural entertainment at the ongoing 2020 Yauri Rigata and Cultural Festival yesterday.
He also said that the riverine Festival of Yauri whose history was traced to 200 years ago was full of riverine manoeuvers and water sports as well as other entertainment will now hold on annually.
According to him ,one of the cardinal essences of giving the festival a boost by the State Government is to have a multiplier effect in boosting the tourism sector particularly of Yauri emirate and the state at large.
He said there is a global paradigm shift and a boost in the tourism sector of the country that called for the modernization of the Rigata festival of the Yauri people to meet present realities and attract tourist, which led to the adoption of Rigata by the state government to serve as one of the cultural events in the state.
Alhaja Mamuda Warra explained that despite the changes brought about by modernity, Yawuri remain a very important commercial centres where people from Nigeria and beyond come to buy fish, onion, livestock, groundnut oil and hide and skin.
‘’ The rudiment of annually staging of the festival is for enhancing economic activities and tourism for the development of the emirate, Kebbi state and Nigeria in general’’, he added.
The commissioner urged all people of the state to support the desire of Yauri to enlarge the festival to meet international standard, for tourism and economic gains
