Kano's mass wedding: celebrations with strict vetting to weed out fraudsters

In Kano, Nigeria, about 1,500 couples wed in a government-sponsored mass wedding funded with roughly 1.5 billion naira to cover dowries, furniture and initial home needs; each couple receives 100,000 naira as dowry and 100,000 naira as startup capital, plus household goods, and must pass comprehensive medical checks overseen by the Hisbah Islamic police. The program, started in 2012 and drawing thousands of applicants (around 5,000 this year), aims to assist low-income couples, but some applicants attempt to game the system with fake partners or altered tests, leading to ongoing vetting; the ceremony culminates at the Emir's palace with a governor-hosted breakfast.