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By:: Abdullahi Inuwa
The Africa International Documentary Festival Foundation (AFIDFF) is set to partner with the Kebbi State Government to train young people in digital content creation, cultural documentation and the promotion of the state’s rich heritage.
The Director-General of AFIDFF, Malame Mangzha, disclosed this when the Kebbi State Commissioner for Information and Culture, Alhaji Yakubu Ahmed BK, led media aides to the Foundation on a courtesy visit to explore areas of collaboration.
Mangzha said the Pan-African organisation had spent about a decade documenting Africa’s cultural heritage and history, working with international organisations, including UNESCO and Google Arts & Culture, to showcase heritage sites, monuments, festivals and other cultural assets.
She recalled AFIDFF’s previous documentation of the famous Argungu Fishing Festival in Kebbi, revealing that videos from the coverage had attracted more than 18 million views across various digital platforms.
According to her, the response demonstrated the enormous global attention Kebbi’s cultural events could attract when professionally documented, packaged and promoted through digital platforms.
“We have built a community of more than 5,000 young content creators with different digital skills, and we are ready to extend these opportunities to young people in Kebbi State,” Mangzha said.
She explained that the proposed collaboration would provide young people with practical skills capable of enabling them to document and tell authentic African stories while creating opportunities within the expanding digital economy.
Responding, Commissioner Yakubu Ahmed BK said the visit was part of the Kebbi State Government’s efforts to establish strategic partnerships and advocacy networks with organisations and individuals capable of promoting the state and projecting its development initiatives.
The Commissioner expressed appreciation to AFIDFF for its earlier documentation of the Argungu Fishing Festival, describing the success of the project as evidence of the potential for deeper collaboration.
He urged the Foundation to expand its activities to other major cultural events across the state, stressing that Kebbi possessed a rich cultural heritage capable of attracting wider national and international attention.
Among the events highlighted by the Commissioner were the Gwandu Emirate Horse-Racing Festival, Yauri Emirate Rigata Cultural Festival and Zuru Emirate Uhola Festival.
He said professionally documenting and promoting such festivals would help preserve Kebbi’s cultural heritage while exposing its traditions, history and tourism potential to audiences beyond Nigeria.
The proposed partnership is therefore expected to create a platform where young Kebbi residents can acquire digital storytelling skills while contributing to the documentation, preservation and global promotion of the state’s cultural identity.
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