By Kelu Musa
An NGO, I Believe Cultural and Social Development Foundation, has unveiled an initiative aimed at promoting African trade, tourism and cultural diversity.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the foundation unveiled the African Trade, Tourism and Culture Expo and Summit (ATTCE) and I Believe Carnival Nigeria 2026 at a news conference on Wednesday in Abuja.
In his speech, Omoefe Tawiyah, Chief Executive Officer of the foundation, said the ATTCE was aimed at leveraging Africa’s rich culture, creativity, and commerce for economic gains.
According to him, ATTCE is a Pan-African platform designed to connect governments, investors, business leaders, tourism stakeholders, cultural institutions, development partners, and innovative enterprises.
He said it was positioned as a high-impact continental marketplace where trade meets opportunity, tourism drives investment, and culture strengthens diplomacy.
According to him, the carnival will showcase Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage and position culture as a viable development tool that can generate employment across creative sectors.
Tawiyah said plans were underway to hold the 2026 ATTCE with the theme, “Africa in Motion—Where Trade, Culture and Capital Meet”.
According to him, the event scheduled to hold from Nov. 10 to 12 at Jabi Lake Mall, is expected to bring together business owners, investors, tourism professionals, creatives and government institutions from across Africa.
He said the event would be organised in collaboration with the Office of the Special Assistant to the President on Art, Culture and Creative Economy and the European Cultural Center Nigeria.
Tawiyah said the expo would feature exhibitions, summit discussions, cultural presentations, business-to-business and business-to-government engagements, sales and networking opportunities.
“Businesses will meet B2B and B2G. There will be scaling, there will be sales, there will be networking opportunities generally,” he said.
According to him, ATTCE would serve as the economic and business component of the programme, while the carnival would showcase Africa’s cultural diversity through performances and community participation.
“The priority is high-level participation.
“We want everybody all over the world to come and experience Africa so that we are in a position to tell our stories, and our stories are not being told for us,” he said.
Tawiyah said the programme would feature “Think Africa” on the first day, “Trade and Connect Africa” on the second, and “Experience Africa” on the third day.
He said the carnival would feature cultural groups from Nigeria and other African countries, alongside schools, corps members and other participants.
He said 16 countries from within and outside Africa participated in the 2024 edition, adding that discussions were ongoing with representatives of Kenya, Uganda, Gabon and Botswana.
Tawiyah said the organisers were seeking broader participation to enable people to experience African cultures, discover businesses and build partnerships across borders.
In his remarks, Dr Ola Awakan, Director-General, Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA) pledged organisation’s support for the initiative.
Awakan, who was represented by Michael Akinyele, Director of Marketing and Promotion, NTDA, said tourism and culture were closely connected and could support efforts to showcase Nigeria’s diverse heritage.
“Tourism and culture are seen as twins that cannot really be separated. For this event, tourism is going to be used as an aperture,” he said.
The DG said Nigeria has more than 250 ethnic groups, each with distinct cultural traditions and ways of life, which the event could showcase to Africa and international audiences.
Also speaking, Abiodun Odusanwo, National President, Institute for Tourism Professionals of Nigeria (ITPN), commended the convener for integrating trade with tourism and culture.
“What Omoefe has done differently from what has occurred before is that he has actually incorporated trade into this,” he said.
Odusanwo said the institute was supporting the initiative and would encourage its members to participate in the programme.
Obi Asika, Director-General, National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), said the event would provide a platform to promote Nigeria’s living arts and culture.
Asika, who was represented by Etim Udoka, Principal Performing Arts Officer, NCAC, said the council would support the event through cultural performances and publicity across its communication platforms.
“Tourism is beyond just having physical sites. Our culture and traditions are very deep, and we need to showcase this. We need to sell this to the world,” he said.
Earlier, Denja Abdullahi, Director of Government Relations and Strategic Partnerships for the carnival, called for collaboration among government institutions, private-sector players and cultural stakeholders.
He said the event’s objectives cut across different sectors and required partnerships to achieve its expected impact.(NAN)
Edited by Joshua Olomu
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