The Biggest Event Opportunities in Nigeria in 2025 and 2026
My insights on the biggest opportunities for Nigerian events in 2025 and 2026.
My People,
I am so proud of all that’s happening in the event, entertainment and hospitality spaces in Nigeria. I cheese so hard everytime I see footage of the new Wole Soyinka National Theatre…a well-revived giant of a landmark. I wrote about the process of bringing our debut show - Enchanted Concerts to life in the first part of this article. As a growing economy, I am excited about the future and the things we can do to bring magic to the stage. In the spirit of sharing and growing, for the second part of this article, here are four opportunities I see for the events industry in Nigeria:
Repurpose Church Venues - Nigerians build incredible churches. The sound, light, event production and streaming quality of churches are some of the best in the country. The same can be said of churches in Canada and the USA, which was why our Toronto and Calgary shows for the debut edition of Enchanted Concerts were hosted by church venues. Church buildings are essentially fully-fitted theatres. So, I wonder why more churches in Nigeria do not rent out their actual sanctuaries to select events by the general public (some have separate halls or event venues which they rent out). I recognize that it is important to maintain the sanctity of a church and restrict the nature of events that can be hosted there. However, there are a host of events that are church-compliant, happen on non-church days, require a theatre-style setup and the accompanying lights, sound and screens. These events could bring some additional value to a church and extend their ability to do good work in the community. Concerns about the handling of the church equipment can be addressed by requiring events to use the approved church technicians.
In related news, I think Nigeria’s museums, cultural centers, schools, and even heritage buildings can double as event venues to attracts new audiences, raise revenue for their maintenance, and reduce the cost of creating new event infrastructure.
Nigeria hosts large events including the largest gospel concert in the world. Event Insurance and Risk Management - I was surprised to learn that there were no plug and play insurance packages available for the grand finale of Enchanted Concerts: Greatest Nigerian Classics. When we ran a full travel service agency, TVP built our own domestic travel insurance package with an incredible insurance company. There were international travel packages on the market but no one seemed to care about providing insurance coverage for our trips to Olumo Rock, Erin Ijesha or down the road for a Lagos City tour.
So, when I could not find an event package, I reached out to insurance houses to build one. One particular company was excellent in constructing something that met our needs but they required the full names and dates of birth of all guests. Well, this is a near-impossibility for a concert-style event where people buy tickets online, often for pairs or large groups. I simply cannot ask people for their full government names and dates of birth to attend the show, but for some reason, it seemed to be a regulatory requirement. I have been unable to find a true event insurance package like the sensibly-priced ones offered by PAL in Canada that only require information about the size of the audience, the nature of the performance, the cost of tickets and other liabilities. In fact, I believe that every venue in Nigeria should eventually require event insurance coverage from event planners. Venues in Nigeria host weddings and concerts and parties every day with pyrogenic activity, but no insurance? I refuse to believe that the popular annual events that bring together 70,000 people or 15,000 people at a time do so on ‘vibes and Insha Allah’ without event insurance coverage. Please, if you know of any true event insurance packages or which ones these big events use, kindly point me in their direction.
Family Shows - The Detty December event season is around the corner and it will be a dream to see as many family-friendly shows as there are adult shows. I look forward to light forests and festivals, non-religious family concerts, kid-friendly art festivals, aquariums, more water parks (some cool ones exist already), and so many more activities.
Fine Music Experiences - Projects like Enchanted Concerts show that audiences are craving high-quality, nostalgic, and cross-genre music experiences. There’s room to build the class of live performances that combine orchestral presentation with popular music storytelling. I am of the opinion that Nigeria can can export instrumental music, theatre experiences and other musical products at scale just as we have done our films, pop music and food.
What other opportunities do you see? Please share in the comments or send me an email by replying this directly in your inbox.
Till next time,
Let your senses come alive ✨
Funmi Oyatogun
Hi Funmi, this was great to read! Did you find the event safety measures adequate? Any gaps there?