FG unveils 100-day tourism calendar to unlock $100bn

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The Federal Government has backed the launch of a 100-Day Tourism Calendar designed to aggregate Nigeria’s festivals, concerts, cultural events and lifestyle experiences on a single digital platform as part of efforts to unlock a projected $100bn tourism and creative economy.

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The calendar, powered by MyCityApp and MyLagosApp, was unveiled at the Ember2Remember National Stakeholders’ Conference in Victoria Island, Lagos, according to Dr. Nneka Anibeze, the Senior Special Assistant to the Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, on Tuesday.

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The initiative is targeted at maximising the economic potential of the September-to-December festive season by connecting visitors, Nigerians in the diaspora and local consumers with events and tourism experiences across the country.

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Speaking at the event, Musawa said the government was seeking to move beyond viewing the festive period merely as a season of celebration and instead turn it into a platform for job creation, investment and business opportunities.

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Musawa said, “This initiative is about moving beyond the traditional concept of a festive season. It is about deliberately organising, packaging, promoting, and monetising one of the most economically active periods in our national calendar.”

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She explained that tourism generated opportunities across several sectors, including aviation, transportation, hospitality, entertainment, retail, technology and the creative industries.

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“Every visitor creates a value chain — from aviation and transportation to hotels, restaurants, entertainment, retail, technology, artisans, and local communities. Within these value chains are opportunities for businesses, jobs, investment, and livelihoods,” the minister stated.

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Musawa urged state governments, event organisers, tourism operators, hospitality businesses and other stakeholders to upload their activities scheduled between September and December onto the national calendar.

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She said the platform was intended to provide a single destination where people could discover tourism and cultural experiences across Nigeria.

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“We want to create a single, credible, and compelling platform through which Nigerians, the diaspora, and international visitors can discover what is happening across Nigeria. Imagine someone sitting in London, New York, Johannesburg, or Toronto being able to see, in one place, the extraordinary experiences available across Nigeria,” she said.

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The minister commended the Chief Executive Officer of MyCityApp, Ifeoma Chukwu, for driving the initiative and called for broader participation by states and private-sector operators.

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Earlier, Chukwu said Nigeria could realistically build a $100bn tourism economy if its cultural assets and visitor experiences were deliberately packaged and monetised. She cited the contribution of tourism to major global economies, arguing that Nigeria’s target should be viewed as achievable rather than unrealistic.

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“When we speak about building a $100 billion tourism economy, it may sound ambitious. But globally, the evidence tells us it is achievable,” Chukwu said.

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She added, “The question is not whether a $100 billion tourism economy is possible. It is: why not Nigeria?”

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The initiative comes as the Federal Government seeks to diversify economic activity beyond oil by expanding the contribution of tourism, culture and the creative industries to national growth.

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Nigeria has a large pool of cultural festivals, entertainment events, historical sites and creative enterprises, but the sector has continued to face challenges including fragmented promotion, inadequate infrastructure, weak visitor data and limited coordination among tourism operators.

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The new calendar is expected to address part of the visibility and coordination challenge by bringing events from different cities and states together on one digital platform.

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The organisers said MyLagosApp and MyCityApp would distribute the events through a 360-degree media ecosystem targeting audiences in Nigeria and abroad.

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The platform is expected to feature festivals, concerts, exhibitions, food experiences, cultural celebrations, fashion and sporting events, conferences and other major activities taking place during the period.

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Among those at the conference were the Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Toke Benson-Awoyinka; Enugu State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Ugochi Madueke; the Director-General of the National Council for Arts and Culture, Obi Asika; Director-General of the National Gallery of Art, Ahmed Sodangi; Director-General of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria, Olalekan Fadolapo; and MTN Nigeria Chief Executive Officer, Karl Toriola.

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Stakeholders were urged to submit events for inclusion in the calendar through the MyCityApp platform.

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