The Federal Government has endorsed the launch of a 100-Day Tourism Calendar aimed at bringing together 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.

The calendar, powered by MyCityApp and MyLagosApp, was unveiled at the Ember2Remember National Stakeholders’ Conference in Victoria Island, Lagos.

Dr Nneka Anibeze, Senior Special Assistant to the Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.

The initiative is designed to maximise the economic potential of the September-to-December festive period by connecting tourists, Nigerians in the diaspora and local consumers with events and tourism experiences across the country.

Speaking at the event, Musawa said the government wanted to transform the festive period from simply a time of celebration into a major platform for job creation, investment and business opportunities.

“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 said.

The minister noted that tourism creates economic opportunities across several sectors, including 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,” Musawa stated.

She called on state governments, event organisers, tourism operators, hospitality businesses and other stakeholders to upload their events scheduled between September and December onto the national calendar.

According to her, the platform is intended to serve as a central destination where Nigerians, members of the diaspora and international visitors can easily discover cultural and tourism experiences across the country.

“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 commended the Chief Executive Officer of MyCityApp, Ifeoma Chukwu, for spearheading the initiative and urged more states and private-sector operators to participate.

Earlier, Chukwu said Nigeria could build a $100bn tourism economy if its cultural assets and visitor experiences were properly packaged and monetised.

She pointed to the significant contribution of tourism to major economies around the world, arguing that Nigeria’s $100bn target should be considered achievable.

“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 as the Federal Government intensifies efforts to diversify the economy beyond oil by increasing the contribution of tourism, culture and the creative industries to national development.

Nigeria has numerous cultural festivals, entertainment events, historical attractions and creative businesses. However, the sector continues to face challenges such as fragmented promotion, inadequate infrastructure, limited visitor data and poor coordination among tourism operators.

The new digital calendar is expected to help address some of these challenges by bringing events from different states and cities together on a single platform, making them easier for potential visitors and consumers to discover.