- including for the two days' Festival perfomances and nights shows, excluding tours and workshops
International Visitor Ticket Price: 1,500 Dalasi
The Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival is a community-led cultural event, organised by the Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival Committee.
The Janjanbureh Tour Guide Association is one of several local supporters, working alongside the Committee and wider community to help visitors understand the festival, plan their visit, and explore Janjanbureh responsibly.
The Kankurang Festival
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.
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.
Join us this January, Friday 23rd to Sunday 25th, for an unforgettable experience.
Justice Muhammed Saidykhan
President
The 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
Festival Program
2026
Image by kind permission of ITC
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!
From afternoon processions through the streets to electrifying night performances, the Kankurang Festival surrounds you
with movement, rhythm, and celebration.
Video by kind permission of ITC
Community-Led, Partnership Supported
The Janjanbureh Kankurang Festival is organised by the local
Janjanbureh Event Management Committee in collaboration with the National Centre for Arts and Culture, with support from partners including the International Trade Centre, the Gambia Tourism Board, and the European Union.
Revived in 2018, the festival celebrates cultural heritage as a source of identity, unity, and community development
Yusapha Keita, ITC Country representative;
Imma Roca, EU Ambassador
and Ousman Bah, Governor of CRR,
. 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