The International Festival Nuits d’Afrique is delighted to have attracted record crowds for its 37th edition.

Organizers say they welcomed 200,000 festival-goers from July 11-23, which they say is a new peak in popularity.

It was the great Franco-Beninese star Angélique Kidjo who kicked off the festival.

The organizers are already meeting festival-goers next year, from July 9 to 21.