Nigerian government pledges support for 2019 AFRIMAs

The festival, which will run under the theme Feel Africa, was held in Lagos from 2014 to 2017. Last year, it was held in Accra, Ghana, but pulled out of the country ahead of this year's awards ceremony.

”When you look at the AFRIMAs, it’s one of the biggest awards in the music industry in Africa, and what the government has done in the past is to provide the enabling environment for the awards to take place,” Nigerian Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed said.

“We provided support services for the AFRIMAs, we gave them the backing they need and I think it’s on record that the AFRIMA editions held in Nigeria have been among the most successful.”

In July, the organisers of the AFRIMAs withdrew the hosting rights from Ghana citing the country's lack of capacity in meeting its financial and contractual obligations.

Mohammed said Nigeria was the preferred choice for this year’s AFRIMAs because of the country’s relaxed visa regime through its visa-on-arrival policy, making it easier for people to come in.

“This year again, we are ready to partner with hte AFRIMAs professionally, give them the maximum support, such as effective media coverage, and help them reach out to other critical stakeholders,” he said

Music fans can vote for their favourite artists via the AFRIMAs official website.

The AFRIMAs, including peripheral events, will be broadcast live to 84 countries around the world including live streaming on the AFRIMAs website and other online partner platforms.