African Union Targets Rivers, Lagos, Akwa Ibom, Cross Rivers States To Host AFRIMA 2015
In preparation for the 2015 edition of The All Africa Music Awards, AFRIMA, the African Union Commission, AUC in a meeting with the International Committee of AFRIMA last April expressed interest in four cities in Nigeria; Port Harcourt, Lagos, Uyo, and Calabar, to host the continental award which is billed to take place in Nigeria in November 13 to 15, 2015.
In a letter from the African Union inviting the four states of Rivers, Lagos, Akwa Ibom and Cross Rivers to indicate interest in partnering with AFRIMA as the official host city of AFRIMA 2015. The Commissioner for social affairs, African Union Commission, His Excellency, Dr. Mustapha Sidiki Kaloko stated that “the main purpose of the partnership is to showcase the tourism and economic potentials of one of the great cities in Africa and promote its strengths to a global audience which in turn add to the GDP of the state and the continent at large”.
Hosting AFRIMA presents a lot of benefits that would help in raising the continental and international profile of the host city. Some of the benefits are: Long Term Investment and Job Creation; adoption of new benchmarks for city development; Increased civic pride and community empowerment; Increased Tourism and publicity and ultimately an Opportunity to tap into the millions of participants and followers of the growing African music.
According to Matlou Tsotetsi, Direcor of Sponsorship and Communication, AFRIMA, “the host city will be one that is willing to create value and deep brand equity not only for Nigerians but Africans. It must have the most motivation to host AFRIMA in line with its values; have the strongest vision in tourism, culture and entertainment; have the most adequate facilities, surrounding Infrastructure, security and tourist attraction to host the event and should have hosted successful events in the past that attracted both national and or global audiences.”
“AUC has taken interest in these states because they share in AFRIMA`s vision of promoting and preserving Africa`s rich culture. The 2015 edition of AFRIMA will be hosted in Nigeria after she won hosting rights above 13 other countries in 2013 to host the event for three years between 2014 and 2016. Nigeria has proved that it is capable of staging spectacular events after the 2014 AFRIMA was hosted in style in Lagos, in December, 2014.” She concluded.
Port Harcourt, Uyo, Calabar, and Lagos cities have been considered capable of hosting this year`s edition of AFRIMA. Though all cities over the years have shown capacity in terms of security, political stability, tourism, culture preservation, entertainment and tourism, only one city can be the host to AFRIMA 2015. Meet the four cities;
Lagos is arguably the most economically important city of the country. Lagos is famous for her aquatic splendour and is known throughout Africa for its music scene and entertainment. Lagos has given birth to a variety of styles such as Nigerian hip-hop, highlife, juju, fuji and afrobeat. A lot of festivals are held in Lagos which includes Eyo Festival, Badagry Festival, Lagos Black Heritage Carnival, Lagos Carnival, Eko International Film Festival, Lagos Seafood Festival, Lagos Photo Festival and the Lagos Jazz Series.
Port Harcourt is the centre of music, entertainment, social, economic life and foremost industrial city in the south-south region of Nigeria with an internationl airport. It is one of the wealthiest cities in Nigeria in terms of GDP and foreign exchange revenue from the oil industry and is a major industrial centre as it has a large number of multinational firms and other industrial concerns. Aside from being the oil capital, Port Harcourt is also known for the vibrant music, late-night activities, entertainment scene and festivals/events such as Miss ECOWAS, ION Film Festival, Africa film Festival,National Sports festival, CARNIRIV, an historical Port Harcourt annual carnival, which has featured several famous international artists including Shaggy, Patra, Beenie Man, Busta Ryhmes, Joe, Brick & Lace, Wyclef Jean.
Uyo is a fast-growing town, as the town has witnessed massive growth in the past few years. It has an intensive network of divided roads and known for its recreational areas such as the Ibom Connection, the Four Points Sheraton hotel, and the prestigious Le Meridien Ibom Hotel and a Golf Resort with 18 holes. The town of Uyo is notably neat and hospitable to foreigners and its aborigines.
The city of Calabar is immensely popular for its splendid landscape. The major attraction of this city is the Calabar Carnival which attracts thousands within and beyond Nigeria. Calabar has great tourist destinations: Obudu Cattle Ranch, The hilltop (cattle ranch) is about 11km of winded road from the base and can be accessed by either the cable-car or the road while Tinapa is a business and leisure resort associated with the Calabar Free Trade Zone. The city’s architectures were influenced by colonial rule that can mostly be witnessed in the oldest parts like Duke Town, Henshaw Town, and waterfront areas.
In partnership with the African Union Commission, the 2015 AFRIMA awards ceremony is expected to be a star studded event that will be broadcast to 84 countries on 109 television stations across the world.
The AFRIMA award holds on Sunday, November 15, 2015 and will be preceded by the “Africa Music Summit” on November 13, themed“Reviving the Business of Music in Africa”. The Summit is a platform for the African music industry stakeholders to engage and deliberate on how the music industry in Africa can be nurtured in a way that adds to the GDP of the continent. The Summit will also examine opportunities for job creation in the vibrant music industry as a tool for reducing poverty and insecurity in Africa.
There will be the “AFRIMA Music Village,” November 13-14, an open, festival-style concert over a period of two days. Performing live each night will be different, high-selling African music stars bringing thrilling entertainment to more than fifty thousand 50000 audience members expected in attendance.