Friday, 30 November 2018

Top 10 December Concerts in Lagos You Must Attend

Top 10 December Concerts in Lagos You Must Attend
Are you visiting Lagos during the festive month of December or will you like to explore the city and take part in as many events as possible this season. There are a number of fun activities and major events lined up for the month of December.
From concerts featuring major artists to musical festivals that celebrates the entertainment culture and scene in Nigeria, there are a ton of events you and your friends can be a part of this holiday.
To keep you and your loved ones updated about all the fun events happening in Lagos this holiday, we at Jumia Travel have curated a list of the top concerts and events happening in Lagos this December.

1. SPICE LIFESTYLE HONORS WITH ASA:


This event is scheduled to hold on the 5th and 6th of December 2018 at the Eko Convention Centre of Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island Lagos. The event will feature live musical performances, celebrity appearance, fashion show and awards ceremony. Award winning, international recording artiste, Asa will headline the event, guests are sure to be thrilled by her soulful hit songs. Other artists set to perform are Falana, Adekunle gold and Bez. The fashion show at the Spice Lifestyle Honors with Asa will feature pieces by some of Africa’s best designers.

2. SIMI LIVE IN LAGOS 2018:

A live event by Simi, one of the biggest Afropop artist and song writer in Nigeria. Simi Live event is set to hold on the 9th of December to the 10th of December, 2018 between 7pm to 1 am at the Federal Palace Hotel, Ahmadu Bello Way, Lagos. The entrance fee for the event is between 5,000 and 20,000 naira.

3. MAYOR OF LAGOS CONCERT 2018:

One of the major events set to hold in Lagos this December 14th at the Balmoral Event Centre, Federal Palace Hotel. This is the second edition of his Mayor of Lagos Concert. From his hit singles like Odo Remix, Che Che, Posh and Bobo to many other songs, guests are set to enjoy a life time experience at this event. There is an opportunity to make new friends and network with various celebrities who will be present at the event.

4. URBAN MUSIC FESTIVAL:

One of the biggest musical events in Lagos this christmas, enjoy the best time at the Urban Music Festival this season. Scheduled to hold at the Eko Convention Centre of Eko Hotel Lagos from the 21st to 22nd of December. Here is another opportunity to meet new people, network and enjoy maximu fun.

5. FLYTIME MUSIC FESTIVAL:


The major event will be happening live on the 21st of December, 2018 at the Eko Convention Centre, Eko Hotel & Suites. Performances by amazing artists like Olamide, Tiwa Savage, Wande Coal, Falz, Dj Cuppy, Dbanj, Burna Boy, Peruzzi and many others will be enjoyed at the event.
It promises to be a night full of mind blowing excitement and surprise guest appearances.

6. AFROBEAT FESTIVAL:

It is the largest celebration of African culture and heritage, Afrobeat Festival is set to hold on december 22nd and 23rd at the Eko Convention Centre at Eko Hotel Lagos.

7. WIZKID MADE IN LAGOS SHUT DOWN:

Venue: Eko Hotel Lagos.
Date: December 23rd – 24th, 2018

8. AT THE CLUB WITH REMY MARTIN:

Venue: Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island.
Date: December 6th, 2018.

9. COOL FM PRAISE JAM:

Venue: Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island.
Date: December 25th, 2018

10. AFRICA INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL:

Venue: La Campagne Tropicana, Ibeju Lekki.
Date: December 7th -10th, 2018

11. PARK LIFE FESTIVAL:

Venue: ROWE Park, Yaba.
Date: 21St, December, 2018
If you will like to book a hotel in Lagos close to any of the events happening during the festive season, use Jumia Travel booking portal and enjoy amazing deals and discount offers on all Lagos hotels.
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Saturday, 13 October 2018

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF ETHNICITY IN NIGERIA

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF ETHNICITY IN NIGERIA

The ethnicity of Nigeria is so varied that there is no definition of a Nigerian beyond that of someone who lives within the borders of the country (Ukpo, p. 19). The boundaries of the formerly English colony were drawn to serve commercial interests, largely without regard for the territorial claims of the indigenous peoples (38). As a result, about three hundred ethnic groups comprise the population of Nigeria (7), and the country's unity has been consistently under siege: eight attempts at secession threatened national unity between 1914 and 1977. The Biafran War was the last of the secessionist movements within this period (3).
The concept of ethnicity requires definition. Ukpo calls an "ethnic group" a "group of people having a common language and cultural values" (10). These common factors are emphasized by frequent interaction between the people in the group. In Nigeria, the ethnic groups are occasionally fusions created by intermarriage, intermingling and/or assimilation. In such fusions, the groups of which they are composed maintain a limited individual identity. The groups are thus composed of smaller groups, but there is as much difference between even the small groups; as Chief Obafemi Awolowo put it, as much "as there is between Germans, English, Russians and Turks" (11).
The count of three hundred ethnic groups cited above overwhelmingly enumerates ethnic minority groups, those which do not comprise a majority in the region in which they live. These groups usually do not have a political voice, nor do they have access to resources or the technology needed to develop and modernize economically. They therefore often consider themselves discriminated against, neglected, or oppressed. There are only three ethnic groups which have attained "ethnic majority" status in their respective regions: the Hausa-Fulani in the north, the Ibo in the southeast, and the Yoruba (Soyinka's group) in the southwest (11, 21).
We must be very careful to avoid the use of the term "tribe" to describe these ethnic groups. "Tribe," Ukpo points out, is largely a racist term. The Ibo and Hausa-Fulani of Nigeria are each made up of five to ten million people, a figure comparable to the number of, say, Scots, Welsh, Armenians, Serbs or Croats. Yet we do not refer to the latter groups as "tribes." The term "tribe" is almost exclusively, and very indifferently, applied to peoples of Native American or African origin. It is a label which emerged with imperialism in its application to those who were non-European and lived in a "colonial or semi-colonial dependency...in Asia, Africa and Latin America" (14). As we are attempting to discard the prejudices of imperialism it is in our best interests to discard the use of the term "tribe" when referring to the ethnic groups of Nigeria.
With that in mind, we should dabble in brief definitions of the major ethnic groups of Nigeria. The majority groups, as stated above, are the Hausa-Fulani, Ibo and Yoruba. The first, the Hausa-Fulani, are an example of a fused ethnic group, as they are actually made up of two groups, not surprisingly called the Hausa and the Fulani.
The Hausa are themselves a fusion, a collection of Sudanese peoples that were assimilated, long ago, into the population inhabiting what is now considered Hausa land. They believe in the religion of Islam. Their origin is a matter of dispute: legends trace them back to Canaan, Palestine, Libya, Mecca and Baghdad, while ethnologists hold them to be from the Southern Sahara or the Chad Basin. Once they arrived in Hausa land they became known for setting up seven small states centered around "Birni," or walled cities. In these states the Hausa developed techniques of efficient government, including a carefully organized fiscal system and a highly learned judiciary, that gave them a reputation of integrity and ability in administering Islamic law (20).
The Fulani are also Muslims, and, like the Hausa, their origin is more or less an open question. Once a nomadic people, they believe themselves to be descended from the gypsies, Roman soldiers who became lost in the desert, a lost "tribe" of Israel, or other groups such as the relatives of the Britons or the Tuaregs, who inhabit the southern edge of the Sahara in central Africa. Scholars claim that the Fulani are related to the Phoenicians, or place their origin in shepherds of Mauritania that were looking for new pastures. Whatever their origin, the Fulani are known to have arrived in the Hausa states in the early 13th century. Since then they have intermarried with the Hausa, and have mostly adopted the latter's customs and language, although some Fulani decided to stay "pure" by retaining a nomadic life and animist beliefs. The Fulani are most distinctively known for a dispute that developed between them and the local King of Gobir, a spat which developed into a religious war or Jihad ending with a Fulani conquest of the Hausa states (20-21).
The second majority ethnic group is the Ibo, who like the Hausa-Fulani are a synthesis of smaller ethnic groups. In this case the smaller groups are the Onitsha Ibo, the Western Ibo, the Cross River Ibo, and the North-eastern Ibo. Their origins are completely unknown, as they claim to be from about nineteen different places. They do maintain an "indigenous home," however: the belt of forest in the country to the east of the Niger Valley. This home was established to avoid the Fulani's annual slave raids, which were conducted on cavalry that was unable to explore very deeply in the forest. The Ibo thus generally inhabited inaccessible areas, although during the 19th century they began to assert ancestral claims to Nri town, "the heart of the Ibo nationality" (32).
The Ibo established a society that was fascinating in its decentralization. Their largest societal unit was the village, where each extended family managed its own affairs without being dictated to by any higher authority. Where chiefs existed they held very restricted political power, and only local jurisdiction. The villages were democratic in nature, as the government of the community was the concern of all who lived in it.
The third ethnic majority group, the Yoruba, is like the others made up of numerous smaller collections of people. Those who are identified as Yoruba consider themselves to be members of the Oyo, Egba, Ijebu, Ife, Ilesha, Ekiti or Owu peoples. The Yoruba are united, however, by their common belief in the town of Ife as their place of origin, and the Oni of Ife as their spiritual leader. Their mythology holds that "Oduduwa" created the earth; present royal houses of the Yoruba kingdoms trace their ancestry back to "Oduduwa," while members of the Yoruba people maintain that they are descended from his sons. Yoruba society is organized into kingdoms, the greatest of which was called Oyo and extended as far as Ghana in the west and the banks of the Niger to the east. The Oyo empire collapsed in 1830 when Afonja, an ambitious governor of the state of Ilorin, broke away but lost his territory to the hired mercenaries of the Fulani. Despite the fact that this event occurred in close temporal proximity to the Fulani Jihad, it was not associated with it (29-30).
These three groups comprise only fifty-seven percent of the population of Nigeria. The remainder of the people are members of the ethnic minority groups, which include such peoples as the Kanuri, the Nupe, and the Tiv in the north, the Efik/Ibibio, the Ejaw, and the Ekoi in the east, and the Edo and Urhobo/Isoko to the west, along with hundreds of other groups that differ widely in language, culture and even physique. The specific groups mentioned above are distinct in that they were found, in the 1953 census, to have over one hundred thousand members. As the population of Nigeria has doubled to over seventy-eight million people in 1982 from approximately thirty-one million in 1953, it is safe to assume that these groups are now much larger (24, AHD p. 1509).
We close with a comparison that attempts to portray the difficulties of successfully governing such an incredible variety of people. Nigeria is an area the size of the state of Texas in which over three hundred different languages are spoken, and in which the same number of separate cultures desperately try to retain their identity. You can only imagine the ensuing chaos.
A fifth group, the Ijaw, has been growing in population and influence and currently makes up another 10 percent.
Hausa-Fulani
Muslim Hausa and Fulani are the predominant ethnic groups in Nigeria’s northern region. Though the groups originated in different parts of West Africa, religion, intermarriage and adoption of the Hausa language by the Fulani have unified the groups over time. In contemporary Nigerian society, they are often referred to collectively as Hausa-Fulani.
The largest of the major ethnic groups, Hausa and Fulani have been politically dominant since Nigeria’s independence from Britain in 1960.
Islam is a key component of their ethnic identity and continues to inform their role in modern Nigerian society and politics. Their culture is deeply patriarchal and patrilineal.
In recent years, Hausa and Fulani were instrumental in adopting and upholding Sharia, a system of Islamic law, in 11 of the country’s northern states.
Igbo
The Igbo, the main ethnic group in southeastern Nigeria, has represented some of the staunchest opponents of Sharia law. In many northern Hausa-Fulani-dominated states, minority populations of Igbo claim to have been unfairly targeted by laws that do not pertain to their faith.  
Unlike neighboring Hausa and Yoruba cultures, Igbo society was traditionally decentralized and non-hierarchical. This made its members easier converts for European missionaries and today most Igbo are Christian.
Under British colonial rule, many Igbo served in government and military roles and were later key players in Nigerian independence. But over the last few decades the group has become less politically dominant.
Discovery of large oil reserves near Igbo land in the early 1960s and proposed redistricting led many in the group to fear that they would be cut out of revenues from the country’s natural resources.
In 1967, an Igbo secessionist movement in Biafra state led to a 30-month war with the Nigerian government, in which hundreds of thousands of Igbo starved to death.
After the war, Igbo were reintegrated into Nigerian society, but in a more marginalized role. Despite lingering ethnic tension, they now play an important part in southeastern Nigeria’s oil trade. In recent elections, however, they have struggled to coalesce around a single candidate for the presidency.
Yoruba
The Yoruba are one of Nigeria’s most urban ethnic groups. Historically, their culture centered on densely populated city-states each controlled by an oba, or king. Yoruba now form the majority in Lagos, the second most populous city in Africa.
In modern day Nigeria, Yoruba speakers do not always identify with their larger ethnic group, but rather the many smaller Yoruba-speaking communities.
This pluralism extends to Yoruba views of religion. As Islam and Christianity spread to Yoruba land over the past few centuries, the group embraced both faiths alongside its many traditional and animist beliefs. This blend and acceptance of religion survives in modern times and has mitigated some religious conflict in places where Yoruba form the majority.
Like the Igbo, Yoruba held important roles in the British colonial government, participating significantly in both political and economic life. Since independence, the group has been overshadowed by the more numerous and dominant Hausa-Fulani.
However, in 1999 a Christian Yoruba named Olusegun Obasanjo became Nigeria’s president and first elected head of state. He was reelected for a second term in 2003.
Ijaw
In recent years, the Ijaw have agitated for more political franchise in Nigeria. Although they are the fifth largest ethnic group in the country, their traditional lands in the Niger River Delta are some of the country’s most oil-rich.
Oil exploration has had devastating consequences on Ijaw territory and subjected the group to numerous ecological hazards. Mismanagement of oil revenues has kept much of the wealth from returning to Ijaw communities.
In January 2006, the Ijaw militia Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta kidnapped four Royal Dutch Shell employees in the Niger Delta region, demanding the release of an Ijaw militia leader who was arrested by Nigerian authorities. His continued detention has caused members of MEND to swear continued attacks and disruptions to the oil industry.
Despite these ongoing tensions, 2007 could see an Ijaw take a major political office for the first time. Goodluck Jonathan, an Ijaw, is running as a vice presidential candidate for Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’adua, one of the front-runners. 
Ethnic tensions
The Nigerian government has worked out tentative power-sharing arrangements to help ensure that its many ethnic groups have some say in how the country’s natural resource wealth is spent. But major questions about ethnicity and how to balance the many competing interests still dog the society.
Cities remain largely segregated along ethno-religious lines, and confrontation between ethnic groups is common. Often, ethnic clashes in one part of the country can set off a chain of reprisal riots and attacks in other parts of the country.
All major ethnic groups have formed militias to protect their own interests and perpetrate violence on other groups. While illegal, these vigilante groups continue to act with impunity for lack of stringent law enforcement.
 
Reference

Hodgkin, Thomas. Nigerian Perspectives: An Historical Anthology. London: University Press, 1960.

Meek, C. K. The Northern Tribes of Nigeria. London: Oxford University Press, 1925.

Okpu, Ugbana. Ethnic Minority Problems in Nigerian Politics: 1960-1965. Stockholm: LiberTryck AB, 1977.

The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1982.
http://www.postcolonialweb.org/nigeria/ethnicity.html
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/africa-jan-june07-ethnic_04-05

Saturday, 18 August 2018

6 Reasons Nigerians should visit Ghana


6 Reasons Nigerians should visit Ghana

The West African countries of Ghana and Nigeria have an ongoing rivalry between them akin to that of siblings. From football, to politics, to entertainment, citizens of each country always want to demonstrate their superiority over the other, howbeit not in a hateful or biased manner. It is always more bants than facts. There have been several episodes, of ‘social media wars’ or ‘Twitter Fights’ between citizens of both countries that leaves us all clutching our stomach with laughter. Through it all though, it is obvious that it is all love and sport.

In this post, we attempt to give reasons why Nigerians, despite the rivalry with their Ghanian counterparts, should visit the Gold Coast. Just like Nigeria, Ghana is rich in history, mineral resources, culture, tradition and places of interest to see and visit.

Many Nigerians do not even know that in Ghana you have Hausa and Fulani speaking people like there are in Nigeria.



Cousins
Ghanians are like cousins to Nigerians. Visiting Ghana for a Nigerian is like visiting your cousins for holiday. There are lots you share in common, but somehow you all still do things differently. Case in point, the jollof. When Nigerians visit Ghana there is an air of familiarity about the place, some lingo and slangs are commonly used, but their pidgin is still very confusing.

Food
Shitor. Banku. Waakye. Jollof. The list is endless really. Ghanian cuisine can be a joy to experience and even though the eternal battle over whose jollof is better still rages on, no Nigerian should visit Ghana without tasting the jollof. Ghanaian food is actually so popular in Nigeria that there are bukas and restaurants in Lagos dedicated to selling just Ghanaian meals. The most popular among them is Ghana High.


Shatta Wale
Shatta Wale is Ghana’s biggest music sensation at the moment. And only recently he has had a war of words with Nigerian pop artistes on social media. As long as you are not one to take these things too seriously, visiting Ghana to see a Shatta Wale show should be on your list of things to do, at least that way you can see what the hype is about yourself and tell if he is as great as he says he really is.


Beaches
Ghana is blessed with such an impressive stretch of beach line. If you are tired of the Elegushi and Oniru beaches of Lagos, switch it up by exploring the coastline of Labadi and Kobrobite. If you are enthusiastic about wildlife, visit the Cocoloco beach where you would find turtles and a large number of river birds. Beach Resorts in Ghana are beautiful and spending a night or more in one of them would greatly enrich your Ghana experience. Hospitality in Ghana is amazing with big establishments and accra hotels offering top notch service to travelers.






Charle Wote
We have Calabar Carnival. They have Charle Wote. This annual street cum art festival does get bigger and better every year with amazing exhibitions, musical performances, art installations, food,  merchandise vendors as well as live music and dance that goes on well into the night. For anyone who enjoys having a good time, when in Ghana, Charle Wote is a must attend.
Nigerian Community
There is a perpetually growing Nigerian community in Ghana and visiting Ghana would definitely feel like home. It wont be long before you notice the familiar accent of a Nigerian, no matter where he is from back home and quickly tag them as your brother or your sister. Especially in Ghanian Universities where many Nigerians turn to as an alternative to schooling in Europe or right here at home.