The Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy (FMACTCE) has announced a landmark three-year partnership with Chocolate City Group, one of Nigeria’s leading media and entertainment companies, to transform the country’s creative economy.

A Memorandum of Understanding signed on Thursday in Abuja will focus on developing small-scale live arenas nationwide, identifying and nurturing talent, creating global distribution channels for Nigerian content, and strengthening intellectual property frameworks.

The strategic alliance brings together government vision and private sector expertise to develop Nigeria’s creative industries, with special focus on music, content creation, and live events infrastructure.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, theMinister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Barr. Hannatu Musa Musawa emphasised the sector’s economic potential.

“Nigeria’s creative industries represent one of our greatest untapped economic resources, with the potential to contribute significantly to GDP growth, job creation, and foreign exchange earnings. This partnership with Chocolate City exemplifies our commitment to harnessing the power of public-private collaboration to build sustainable creative ecosystems that empower Nigerian talent and showcase our cultural wealth globally.”

Earlier, the Co-Founder and Chairman of Chocolate City Group, Audu Maikori,pointed to the strategic timing of this partnership.

Maikori said that recent industry reports indicate that Nigeria’s music industry alone generates around $2 billion annually, a sizeable portion of the $26 billion global music economy. 

“Afrobeats has emerged as Nigeria’s most powerful cultural ambassador, opening doors for our artists on the global stage. Beyond this, Afrobeats also serves as a powerful cultural export and diplomatic resource, enhancing Nigeria’s global reputation. This partnership will provide the institutional support and infrastructure needed to sustain this momentum and create pathways for the next generation of creative talents. By working with the government, we can address long-standing challenges in distribution, infrastructure, and rights protection that have limited the sector’s full potential.”

In the same vein,  Paul Okeugo, Co-Founder and Vice Chairman of Chocolate City Group highlighted the economic multiplier effect of the partnership. 

“When we develop performance venues and creative spaces across Nigeria, we’re creating jobs not just for artists but for sound engineers, event managers, security personnel, hospitality workers, and countless others. This partnership allows us to scale these opportunities nationwide while ensuring Nigerian creators retain ownership of their intellectual property and benefit directly from their creative output.”

The partnership will be implemented through a Joint Working Committee comprising representatives from both organisations, who will identify specific projects for execution.

Expected outcomes include empowering local talent, fostering sustainable entrepreneurship, enhancing the global reach of Nigerian creative content, and developing critical infrastructure for the creative economy.

The announcement comes as Chocolate City celebrates its 20th anniversary and coincides with the Federal Ministry’s Nigeria Destination 2030 initiative, designed to grow the arts, culture and creative economy.

Nigeria Destination 2030 is a comprehensive national initiative led by the Federal Government to position Nigeria as a premier global destination for tourism, investment, and cultural exchange by 2030. The program integrates policy reforms, infrastructure development, and strategic partnerships to showcase Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage, natural landscapes, and creative industries on the world stage. 

Through coordinated efforts across federal ministries, state governments, and private sector stakeholders, Nigeria Destination 2030 aims to diversify the national economy, generate sustainable employment, attract foreign investment, and strengthen Nigeria’s soft power diplomacy. 

Chocolate City Group is Nigeria’s leading integrated entertainment company, founded in 2005. The company has evolved from a music label into a multifaceted entertainment powerhouse, spanning creative infrastructure, music production, artist management, content distribution, publishing, and consultancy in the creative industries. 

As a pioneer in Nigeria’s entertainment industry, Chocolate City has discovered, developed, and promoted some of Africa’s most celebrated artists, including Femi Kuti, Blaqbonez, Young Jonn, and Ice Prince, helping to shape the global perception of African music.