FG Backs 100-Day Tourism Calendar To Drive $100bn Economy

The federal government has thrown its weight behind a 100-Day Tourism Calendar aimed at bringing together Nigeria’s festivals, concerts, cultural events and lifestyle experiences on a single digital platform.

The initiative, powered by MyCityApp and MyLagosApp, is part of efforts to harness the economic potential of the tourism and creative sectors and contribute to a projected $100 billion economy.

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

The initiative focuses on the September-to-December festive period, with the organisers seeking to connect visitors, Nigerians in the diaspora and local consumers to events and tourism experiences taking place across the country.

Speaking at the conference, Musawa said the federal government wanted to transform the festive period from a time primarily associated with celebrations into an avenue for generating employment, attracting investment and creating business opportunities.

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.”

She noted that tourism had a wide economic reach, creating opportunities in areas such as aviation, transportation, hospitality, entertainment, retail, technology and the creative industries.

“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.

The minister called on state governments, event organisers, tourism operators, hospitality businesses and other stakeholders to submit details of activities scheduled for September through December to the national calendar.

According to her, the platform would serve as a central hub for discovering tourism, cultural and lifestyle experiences available in different parts of Nigeria.

“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.

Musawa also praised the Chief Executive Officer of MyCityApp, Ifeoma Chukwu, for spearheading the initiative, while encouraging states and private-sector operators to participate actively.

Earlier, Chukwu said Nigeria had the capacity to develop a $100 billion tourism economy by deliberately packaging and commercialising its cultural resources and visitor experiences.

She pointed to the contribution of tourism to economies around the world, maintaining that Nigeria’s $100 billion ambition was attainable if its tourism potential was properly developed and marketed.

“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.

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

The initiative comes amid the Federal Government’s efforts to reduce the economy’s dependence on oil by increasing the contribution of tourism, culture and the creative industries to national development.

Nigeria has a rich array of festivals, entertainment events, historical attractions and creative enterprises. However, the sector continues to contend with challenges such as fragmented promotion, inadequate infrastructure, limited visitor data and poor coordination among operators.

The 100-Day Tourism Calendar is expected to improve visibility and coordination by bringing events and experiences from different cities and states together on a single digital platform, making them easier to discover by local and international audiences.