FG Unveils Digital Platform, Targets $100bn from Tourism, Creative Economy

The Federal Government has launched a digital data platform designed to attract investment into Nigeria’s tourism and creative industries, as part of its ambition to generate $100bn in gross domestic product contribution and create over three million jobs from the sectors by 2030.

The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during the official launch of the D30 Platform, also known as Destination 2030.

Musawa said the initiative was designed to address longstanding gaps in reliable and accessible data on Nigeria’s creative and tourism industries, which she identified as a major constraint to unlocking their economic potential.

She said the platform would provide investors, government institutions, businesses and entrepreneurs with information to identify opportunities, assess infrastructure gaps and make informed decisions about investment.

“Today, we are not simply unveiling a technology platform. We are taking a deliberate step towards changing how Nigeria understands, measures and harnesses the economic value of its cultural and creative assets,” the minister said.

According to her, Nigeria’s music, film, fashion, visual arts, literature, cultural heritage and tourism attractions possess enormous potential to generate revenue, support livelihoods and contribute to national development.

However, she said the country had not always had the comprehensive data required to determine the scale of available opportunities and the investments needed to develop them.

“We have not always had the reliable, accessible and comprehensive data required to understand the true scale of our opportunities,” she said.

Musawa explained that the D30 platform was developed to consolidate sectoral data, research, mapping and economic intelligence to support evidence-based policymaking and private-sector investment.

She illustrated its potential by citing investors seeking to establish film production facilities, state governments planning tourism destinations and entrepreneurs looking to expand their creative businesses.

“These are the kinds of decisions we want D30 to support. We want to move from fragmented information to coordinated intelligence, from untapped potential to visible opportunities, and from economic possibilities to actual investments and sustainable jobs,” she said.

The minister said the platform aligned with the economic diversification objectives of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, adding that the ministry’s roadmap targeted over three million jobs and a $100bn contribution to the nation’s GDP by 2030.

She, however, stressed that achieving the targets would require coordinated action, strategic investments, stronger institutions, improved infrastructure and an enabling environment for businesses.

“D30 is not intended to be another government database that simply accumulates information. Its purpose is to support decisions. Decisions that help businesses expand. Decisions that guide investors towards viable opportunities. Decisions that enable government to deploy resources more effectively,” Musawa said.

She also highlighted the relationship between tourism and the creative economy, noting that Nigerian music, films, festivals and cultural heritage could stimulate interest in the country as a destination and generate demand for hospitality businesses and local industries.

According to her, the platform was conceived as an integrated intelligence resource to connect opportunities across the two sectors rather than treat them as separate areas of economic activity.

Musawa called on ministries, departments and agencies, state governments, industry associations, private-sector operators and research institutions to contribute to the initiative.

She said the government intended to establish a collaborative framework that would protect the integrity and confidentiality of contributed information while making trusted, published intelligence accessible to stakeholders.

“The true value of D30 will be measured by the opportunities it reveals, the investment it helps unlock, the enterprises it supports, and the jobs it helps create,” she said.

The minister commended Cavista, the ministry’s technology development partner, for providing the technical expertise required to develop the platform, while urging stakeholders to focus on translating the information into practical economic outcomes.

In his welcome address, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Abdulkarim Ozi, said the platform represented an important milestone in efforts to harness the economic potential of Nigeria’s cultural and creative assets.

Ozi said the country’s music and film industries, fashion, visual arts and tourism destinations could attract investment and create employment if supported by reliable information and appropriate infrastructure.

“The D30 Platform is designed to provide a centralised source of reliable information and economic intelligence on Nigeria’s creative and tourism sectors,” he said.

He added that the platform would support evidence-based policymaking, provide investors with greater visibility into emerging opportunities and enable businesses to identify areas for expansion.

Ozi said achieving the ministry’s employment and GDP targets would require more than policies and government programmes.

“It will require the right infrastructure, credible information, institutional partnerships and an enabling environment for investment. D30 is intended to contribute to this foundation,” he said.

The permanent secretary called for stronger collaboration among government agencies, development partners and private-sector stakeholders to ensure that the platform remained a reliable national resource.

He said its effectiveness should be measured by its contribution to investment, enterprise development and job creation rather than the volume of information it contained.

“The true measure of D30’s success will not be how much information it contains, but how effectively that information helps attract investment, empower businesses, create jobs and contribute to national development,” Ozi said.

Also speaking at the launch, the Executive Director and Vice President, Government and External Affairs, Cavista Holdings, Olumide Olayomi, said the company had committed private funding and technical expertise to develop the platform through its subsidiary, Cavista Technologies, in partnership with the ministry.

Olayomi said the initiative would help stakeholders identify investment opportunities, assess infrastructure gaps and make better-informed decisions about the development of the creative and tourism industries.

He said D30 brought together information on tourism infrastructure, attractions, cultural and creative industries, government interventions and creative professionals.

“D30 brings together information on creative and cultural industries, tourism infrastructure, sector interventions, tourism sites, attractions and creative professionals,” he said.

Olayomi added that the platform’s impact would depend on how effectively stakeholders used its information to attract investments, expand enterprises and generate employment.

“The value of this platform will ultimately be determined by how it is used. It will be measured by the quality of decisions it supports, the investments it helps unlock, the enterprises it enables to grow and the jobs that follow,” he said.

He said the initiative demonstrated what could be achieved when government policy and private-sector investment were aligned around a common economic objective.

Olayomi also highlighted Cavista Holdings’ investment in the hospitality sector through Glocient Hospitality, which owns and operates Ikogosi Warm Springs Resort and Conference Centre in Ekiti State.

He said the company’s experience in the industry had reinforced the importance of infrastructure, accessibility, investment, skills and effective planning in developing successful tourism destinations.

The Cavista executive commended the ministry and the National Bureau of Statistics, alongside other participating government institutions, for their roles in the initiative.

He said the launch marked the beginning of efforts to translate the information provided by the platform into investments and measurable economic benefits.

“Our hope is that this platform will help Nigeria see its tourism and creative assets more clearly, identify opportunities more precisely and mobilise investment more effectively,” Olayomi said.

Nigeria’s creative industries, particularly music, film and fashion, have gained international visibility, while the country’s cultural heritage sites, natural attractions and hospitality businesses offer opportunities for tourism development.

However, expanding the sectors’ contribution to the economy requires investment in infrastructure, access to finance, reliable data and stronger coordination between government institutions and private operators.

The D30 initiative is intended to address part of that challenge by consolidating information on tourism sites, infrastructure, creative professionals, cultural industries and government interventions into a common digital platform.

Its longer-term impact will depend on the quality and regular updating of its data, the participation of relevant institutions and the extent to which investors and businesses use the information to make investment and expansion decisions.