A couple who live in Nigeria\u2019s \u201cdivorce capital\u201d are being hailed for their long marriage having recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.<\/p>\n
Mahmud Kabir Yusuf and Rabiatu Tahir spoke to the BBC about the secrets of their happiness, and about why so many marriages fail in the northern city of Kano, in a video that has generated much comment.<\/p>\n
Mr Yusuf puts it down to his wife\u2019s generous nature.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe is a very unselfish person and she overlooks a lot which has contributed to the success of our marriage,\u201d the 76-year-old told BBC Hausa.<\/p>\n
This prompts a smile from Ms Tahir, who is in her late sixties. Together the couple have had 13 children – and she praised her husband\u2019s ability to remain calm in the face of the difficulties all families confront.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is a very patient man and I feel that was also key to our success,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The pair say they love and respect each other – and they clearly enjoy each other\u2019s company, breaking off to laugh several times during the interview.<\/p>\n
For Hassana Mahmud, it is a revelation. The 39-year-old divorcee has been married five times and is impressed by the couple and their evident contentment.<\/p>\n
“In all my marriages I have only spent four years with a spouse – so to see them on social media celebrating this milestone was refreshing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy husbands were all nice and caring during courtship but changed after the wedding,” said the mother of four.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel bad whenever I hear people call Kano ‘the divorce capital of Nigeria’, I hope things will change,” she added.<\/p>\n
Kano gained the epithet after divorce rates began to rise in the 1990s and it has not been able to shake off the unwanted label.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of marriages collapse each month in Nigeria\u2019s most populous state, whose capital, Kano city, is the commercial hub of the north.<\/p>\n
In 2022 research done by the BBC in collaboration with the local government disclosed that 32% of marriages in Kano state only survive between three and six months.<\/p>\n
It also revealed that some people aged between 20 and 25 had already gone through three marriages.<\/p>\n