For the largest pilgrimage of the Mouride fraternity, which takes place this Tuesday, October 6, there is no party without the distribution of beef dishes. Every year, tens of thousands of cattle come from Senegal and neighboring countries. This year, organizers and believers had to deal with the closure of the borders linked to Covid-19 and the coup on 18 August in Mali.
as reported from Dakar
Touba has its Magal, its great mosque, its innumerable followers and its Bérndé. This Wolof word denotes the festivities, the distribution of dishes to all Murid disciples who came to honor the founder of the Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba fraternity.
For this, about 150,000 cattle move each year to Touba according to the organizers. Oxen from the whole sub-region, especially Mali and Mauritania. For all these ruminants, faithful and marabouts would spend 33 billion CFA francs or 50 million euros, according to Cheikh Abdou Lahad Mbacké, president of the Magal Communications Commission.
An economic storm
According to the Magal organizers, thanks to the influence and interpersonal skills of the Caliph General of Mourides, who has supporters outside Senegal’s borders, the movement of cattle was still able to go unhindered.
And with good reason, this pilgrimage is considered a very important economic storm in Senegal. The organizers are talking about 250 billion CFA francs mobilized or almost 274 million euros.
►Read also: In Senegal: preparations for Magal in times of Covid-19
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