Biguina is a community or village in the
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
of
Bassila
Bassila is a town, arrondissement, and commune located in the Donga Department of Benin. The commune covers an area of 120 square kilometres and as of 2013 had a population of 130,770 people.
The RNIE 3 highway of Benin passes through the town ...
in the
Donga Department
Donga is one of the twelve departments of Benin; its capital is Djougou, the fourth largest city in the country. The department of Donga was created in 1999 when it was split off from Atakora Department. Donga is subdivided into five communes, ea ...
of northwestern
Benin
Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...
. It is located near the border with
Togo
Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...
and it sits on Benin's ''Route Nationale 3'', one of the two main north-south highways in the country.
Biguina is composed of four small villages. The four villages are situated in a line along the highway, each spaced one to two kilometers apart. From north to south, Biguina's constituent villages are Koiwali, Biguina 1 (Akpassa), Biguina 2, and Biguina 3. Biguina 1, usually known to the residents as Akpassa, is the largest of the four villages. It is home to a majority of the total population, to the village's weekly market, and to the community health center.
Biguina 1 is located 28 km south of the commune capital town of Bassila. Koiwali is 2 km to the north of Biguina 1. Biguina 2 is a kilometer south of Biguina 1 and Biguina 3 is a further 2 km. Other nearby villages include
Prekete (12 km to the south),
Aworo (6 km to the north), Kamboli, Togo (8 km to the southwest), and Balanka, Togo (10 km to the northwest).
Population
The population of Biguina is uncertain, but likely in the range of 5,000 to 8,000 people. Approximately half of the total population resides in Biguina 1. Biguina 3 is the next largest of the four villages, with perhaps a quarter of the population, while Biguina 2 and Koiwali are both small.
Ethnic composition
A large majority of residents of Biguina are ethnic Lokpa (or Lukpa) who speak
Lukpa. The Lokpa are closely related to the
Kabye people
The Kabiye, also known as Kabye, Kabre, Cabrai', are a people living in the north central mountains and northern plains of Togo. They speak the Kabiye language. The Kabye are primarily known for farming and cultivation of harsh, dry, infertile land ...
who live in adjacent areas of Togo and speak
Kabiye. Both
Lukpa and
Kabiye are members of the
Gurunsi or Grusi branch of the
Gur language group.
Gur languages
The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. They are spoken in the Sahelian and savanna regions of West Africa, namely: in most areas of Burkina Faso, and in south-central Mali, northeastern Iv ...
are widely spoken across
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to ...
, northern
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
, northern
Togo
Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...
, and northwestern
Benin
Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...
.
Biguina also has a significant resident
Fulani
The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...
(or Fula; french: italic=yes, Peul or ''Peuhl''; ff, Fulɓe) population. The resident Fulani primarily live in small villages or encampments located in the farmlands to the east and west of the main villages. In addition to these two main ethnic groups, there are small minorities of ethnic
Nago
''Nagu'', Kunigami: ''Naguu'' is a city located in the northern part of Okinawa Island, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. As of December 2012, the city has an estimated population of 61,659 and a population density of 288 persons per km2. Its tota ...
and
Fon.
History
Biguina was founded in the 1960s by Lokpa migrants from the
Ouake area, the population center of the Lokpa ethnic group in Benin. Migrants cleared forest land and settled neighboring
Aoro first, then settled Biguina later in the 1960s. The primary school in Biguina 1 was founded in 1972. Biguina 2, Biguina 3, and Koiwali were settled later.
Institutions
Each of the four constituent villages of Biguina has a public primary school. There are two secondary schools, known as ''collèges d'enseignement général'', or CEGs. CEG Sourou is located a kilometer north of Koiwali (at the far north end of Biguina). It was founded in 2004 to serve Biguina and
Aoro. CEG Biguina is situated between Biguina 1 and Biguina 2. It was founded in 2010 to offer a more convenient location for students, most of whom walk to school. Both schools offer instruction through
troisième classe, equivalent to ninth grade.
Biguina 1 has a community health center and an open-air village market, held every Tuesday. Each of four villages has a
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
. Biguina 1 has a
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
church, a
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
church, and a Christian Celeste church.
Government
Biguina is part of the
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
of
Bassila
Bassila is a town, arrondissement, and commune located in the Donga Department of Benin. The commune covers an area of 120 square kilometres and as of 2013 had a population of 130,770 people.
The RNIE 3 highway of Benin passes through the town ...
and therefore falls under the jurisdiction of the mayor of Bassila.
Biguina also has a local governance structure, consisting of a village chief and council. The eight councillors (''conseillers'') and the chief (''chef de village'' or ''délégué'') each represent one of the neighborhoods (''quartiers'') of the village. They are elected locally by the villagers. Their most frequent responsibility is to mediate and resolve disputes. Additionally, they are responsible for organizing and supervising projects relating to the development of the village. For instance, the village council organized the construction of a new secondary school, CEG Biguina, in 2010.
Biguina 2, Biguina 3, and Koiwali have discussed splitting from Biguina 1 in 2014 to elect their own village councils and chiefs.
Economy
Biguina is a rural village with a primarily agricultural economy. It is a located in an agriculturally rich region of Benin. Nearly every crop that is grown in Benin is grown in Biguina. The major food crops are
corn,
African yams, and
manioc
''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated ...
.
Corn and
cashews
The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus '' Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf cu ...
are the two most important cash crops. Other important local crops include
soybean
The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.
Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu a ...
s, beans, rice,
sorghum,
millet,
tomatoes
The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...
,
okra
Okra or Okro (, ), ''Abelmoschus esculentus'', known in many English-speaking countries as ladies' fingers or ochro, is a flowering plant in the mallow family. It has edible green seed pods. The geographical origin of okra is disputed, with su ...
, and
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
. Minor crops (in terms of cash value) include
mangoes,
bananas,
papayas,
shea nuts,
palm nuts,
Rônier palm fruits, and various leaf vegetables.
Commerce is also an important sector of the local economy. There are several small stores, and the village hosts an open-air market every Tuesday.
Biguina does not have electricity. Local homes do not have indoor running water, but the village does have a clean water supply. Biguina has a central diesel-powered water pump, which fills a water tower located on high ground in Biguina 2. From the tower, water flows to spigots located around the village.
External links
Satellite map at Maplandia
{{Commune of Bassila
Populated places in the Donga Department
Commune of Bassila