The Kankurang Festival
Celebrating Ten Years
of the
Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival
Thursday 21st - Sunday 24th
January 2027
To mark its tenth anniversary, the Festival begins a day earlier this year, on Thursday 21st January, ahead of the official opening on Friday 22nd.
Details of the additional Thursday programme will be announced shortly.
🎶 Opening Announcement
Jaliba Kuyateh 🎶
The legendary Jaliba Kuyateh,
The King of Kora,
will open the 10th Anniversary Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival with a special performance.
-
Opening performance:
-
22 January 2027
Image:Gambiana
Thursday 21st – Sunday 24th January 2027
Step into the colour, rhythm, and living heritage of the annual Kankurang Festival.
The theme this 10th year
A DECADE OF RESILIENCE:
SAFEGUARDING HERITAGE,
EMPOWERING COMMUNITY
-reflecting a decade of keeping living heritage strong — celebrating the communities who safeguard these traditions and help carry them forward for future generations.
Community-Led, Partnership Supported
The festival is led by a dedicated local community committee in collaboration with the
National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC),
the Gambia Tourism Board (GTB), and the International Trade Centre (ITC).
The Janjanbureh Tour Guides Association (JTGA) is not part of the festival's organising committee, but is proud to support this important celebration of the town's cultural heritage.
Through this website, the guides hope to share the spirit of the festival, provide useful practical information, welcome visitors and help them discover more of Janjanbureh and its surrounding communities.
An annual celebration of Mandinka heritage, fertility, healing
and peacebuilding,
held every January in Janjanbureh.
The festival showcases the unique cultural expressions of the Kankurang and other West African masquerades, welcoming both local communities and visitors from around the world.
It is a time of joy and colour — filled with dance, drumming, and the sharing of a living cultural tradition.
Welcome Message from the President
Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival Event Management Committee
It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival — an annual celebration held every last weekend of January, showcasing the living cultural heritage of Janjanbureh.
The Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival has grown into one of Gambia’s most important cultural gatherings, rooted in ritual, community, and renewal.
Today’s travellers seek more than sightseeing; they seek to take part, to feel, and to connect. The Kankurang and Masquerade Festival offers just that — a chance to experience the spirit of our traditions through music, art, and community
Since our inaugural edition in 2018, this festival has grown through strong partnerships with Nature Friends International, the National Centre for Arts and Culture, and the Gambia Tourism Board. Together, we celebrate an authentic heritage that unites and inspires.
Plans for the 2027 edition are developing fast. The 10th Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival is taking place from Thursday 21st to Sunday 24th January 2027 adding an extra day in celebration. Further programme details will be shared as these plans are finalised. Book the date in your diary now for an unforgettable experience.
Justice MK Sadikhan
President
So What IS the Kankurang?
The Kankurang is more than a masquerade —
it is a living guardian of Mandinka culture and communal values.
The Kankurang is a sacred masked figure rooted in Mandinka culture, found across The Gambia, Senegal, and Guinea-Bissau. Traditionally emerging during important moments in community life, the Kankurang embodies protection, moral order, and social discipline.
Historically, the Kankurang is closely associated with male initiation rites, serving as a guardian of sacred knowledge and a symbol of transformation. Covered in bark fibres, leaves, and ritual materials, it represents a powerful link between the spiritual world, the forest, and the community, reinforcing shared values of responsibility, respect, and social cohesion.
In places like Janjanbureh, the Kankurang has also played a judicial and protective role, helping to maintain order and resolve transgressions. If you are visiting at times other than the festival it is not unusual to see the Kankurang around the streets and children rushing back to their compounds.
In recognition of its cultural significance, the Kankurang was inscribed by UNESCO in 2005 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (jointly with Senegal).
What to Expect at the
Kankurang Festival
Although details vary from year to year, the Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival follows a familiar flow — an official opening gathering, a day of full festival colour, and a closing focused on community and shared values.
And this year -that mysterious Thursday...
From afternoon processions through the streets to electrifying night performances, the Kankurang Festival surrounds you
with movement, rhythm, and celebration.
This video was recorded by ITC in January 2025 and captures many aspects of the happenings in the Festival grounds and around the town on the Saturday afternoon
Video by kind permission of ITC
A Typical Outline Program
Three Days of Rhythm, Ritual andRenewal
Each With its Own Heartbeat
Friday
" Official Opening -
Taste of The Gambia"
Official Opening Ceremony
• Cultural Performances
• Local Food Displays
Saturday
“Festival in Full Colour”
Hands-on Arts & Crafts
• Made in The Gambia Trade Fair
• Festival Parade through the town
• Main Masquerade Festival
• Night Entertainment
Sunday
"Community Matters"
Community Marathon
Kayak Race
Closing Reflections on Unity and Peace
. Destination Janjanbureh-The Janjanbureh Tour Guides Association are proud to be recognised as valued partners, helping to share the living meaning of the Kankurang with visitors and ensuring it remains rooted in community and sustainable development
Explore the Festival
Colourful images capturing the Festival over different days and evenings
Discover how the Festival returned to Janjanbureh in 2018.
Explore the varied masquerades, their distinctive heritage and the traditions and regionsfrom which they come.
Why the Festival matters to Janjanbrueh, its people and its future
A regular visitor to The Gambia visits Janjanbureh and the Festival
for the first time
This link opens a story in our Stories & Voices collection.
Use the links at the top of the story to continue exploring.