Urban realities and politics of Owanbe in Nigeria

Abstract

This study has been motivated by the diverse and stimulating dimension of urban life, most especially by the unending flair for social festivities, popularly known as Owanbe. While giving its attention to Lagos City in Nigeria, this study strove to contribute to the existing discourse on urban life and its realities. It documents the pattern and dimension of social festivities, the socio-demographic characteristics of the conveners/organizers, the ideological motives behind the unending spate of lavish ceremonies, the factors sustaining these ceremonies, the sources of financing the ceremonies in the face of prevailing precarious economic condition, as well as the developmental implications and the emerging manifestations of these ceremonies. As a participatory research that took place in 5 randomly sampled Local Government Areas in Lagos State between March 2020 and January 2021, the study sourced data using the In‑Depth Interview (IDI), Key Informant Interview (KII), and Focus Group Discussions (FGD). The participants were the stakeholders and opinion leaders within the study areas. The collected data were content analyzed and reported with humanistic approach. The study has discovered that urban dynamics created inequalities and harsh economic conditions. The reality of the inevitability of this situation gave prominence to unconventional leisure and recreation events called Owanbe gatherings. The pattern and dimension of such festivities ranged from birthdays, child naming, burial rites, to chieftaincy ceremonies, and so on. The study concludes that ostentatious spending involved in Owanbe ceremonies encourages disinvestment through the diversion of funds that would have stimulated sustainable economic growth.