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A Nigerian city with an unusually high number of twins celebrates the phenomenon at an annual festival.
In the southwestern city of Iboola, almost every family has twins or other multiples, according to local chief Jimoh Titiloye.
For the past 12 years, the community has organized an annual festival to celebrate the twins.
This year’s event, held earlier this month, included more than 1,000 twins and drew participants from as far away as France, organizers said.
There is no proven scientific explanation for the high twin rate in Iboola, a city of at least 200,000 people, 83 miles south of Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city.
But many in Iboola believe it can be traced back to women’s diets. The twins’ mother, Alake Olawunmi, attributes it to a local delicacy called amala, which is made from yam powder.
John Ofem, a gynaecologist based in the capital Abuja, said it could be that “something they eat there has high levels of certain hormones that are now causing what we call multiple ovulations”.
While this could explain the higher-than-normal rate of fraternal twins in Iboola, the city also has a high number of identical twins.
These results were caused by a fertilized egg that split into two — not because of excessive ovulation.
Nigerian student Taiwo Ojeniyi said he attended the festival with his twin brother to “celebrate the uniqueness of multiple births”.
“We cherish twins, and in some parts of the world they condemn twins,” he said. “This is a blessing from God.”
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