prizes for this catch were presented at a ceremony attended by President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, his wife, six governors and many traditional rulers. The 2009 festival also included water sports, archery and catapulting competitions, a motor rally, performances by dance troupes from Niger, Mali, Chad and Benin, wrestling and boxing matches, and an agricultural fair. The importance of the festival to the economy has led the government to conserve fish stock by prohibiting use of gill nets and cast nets. Irrigation plan The Zauro polder project was conceived in 1969 and long delayed, but seemed likely to be started in 2009. The project would irrigate 10,572 hectares of farmland in the floodplain of the Rima River between Argungu and Birnin Kebbi. Crops would include rice, maize, wheat, barley and vegetables such as cow peas, onions, tomatoes, sweet potatoes and Irish potatoes. The dam would also benefit the fishing industry, important in the state. The project promises significant benefits but is controversial, since it would change land use patterns, displace some communities and flood the site of the annual fishing festival. The Emir of Argungu has been stoned in protests over the project. Museum In June 2009 Argungu Emirate presented a proposal to the National Commission for Museums and Monuments to give the historic Surame site a World Heritage listing. Surame was the first capital of the Kebbi Kingdom, founded by Mohammadu Kanta Kotal. Senator Umaru Abubakar Argungu also asked for help make the Kanta Museum not only a national monument but a historical cultural resource for the World Heritage List. The museum building, adjacent to the main market was built in 1831 by Yakubu Nabame and served as the Emir's palace until 1942, when the British built a new administrative palace during the reign of Muhammed Sani. On 1 July 1958, it opened as a museum, offering an insight into the turbulent history of Kebbi State. The museum has a notable collection of weapons, consisting of charms, spears, swords, wood, stones, bows and arrows, local guns and even drums on display. The museum is also known to be a place where dead emirs of the local government are buried. Rulers Rulers of the Hausa kingdom before incorporation into the Sokoto Caliphate: Rulers of the Hausa Emirate established at Argungu: Bibliography Harris, P. G.: Sokoto Provincial Gazetteer, Sokoto 1938 [Cyclostyled]. Hogben, S. J. and A. H. M. Kirk-Greene: The Emirates of