Maradi

Maradi is the commercial heart of Niger, sitting in the groundnut and millet belt near the Nigerian border with trade running heavily across it, and it is a Hausa city with the palace of the Sarkin Katsina at its centre, a chieftaincy that moved here in the nineteenth century. The markets are among the largest in the country and goods flow constantly to and from Kano. The city was moved to its present site after floods destroyed the old one in the 1940s, which is why the plan is more regular than most Nigerien towns.

History

Maradi was part of the Hausa state of Katsina, and from the early 19th century it was home to a Katsina state in exile ruled by the Sarkin Katsina Maradi. The old town, ringed by a mud wall with four gates in the valley of the Goulbi N'Maradi, was flooded at the end of the rainy season of 1945, and the colonial administration rebuilt it on a new, regular plan (Wikipedia, Maradi, Niger).

The main sights

• The chief's palace - the seat of the Sarkin Katsina in the centre.
• The markets - among the biggest in Niger, working the Nigerian trade.
• The Hausa city - architecture and culture of the southern belt.
• The farming country - groundnut and millet land around the city.

When to go

November to February is the cool dry season. The rains fall June to September and the country greens. Market days are busiest.

Practical notes

It is a working commercial city with little arranged for visitors. Heat and dust outside the cool months are considerable. Palace visits need arrangement.

Nearby

Lake Madarounfa is south, and Zinder is east.

Key facts