Baba Sadiq Abdulai Abu, CEO of 3Media Networks, has provided information regarding the state of the AfroNation music festival.
He reaffirmed in a recent statement that AfroNation is moving to Nigeria rather than coming back.
He said that although conditions can change in the future, a return to Ghana might be taken into consideration.
According to Baba Sadiq, Ghana’s market is too small to sustain the kind of festival experiences that AfroNation provides financially.
“The size of our market is small. Our market alone from within the market can’t fund the sort of experiences that needs to be here.
“You can’t find the money from here to sometimes look outside and when you’re fetching it from outside they determine where and where you should be at any point in time,” he said.
Baba Sadiq also recommended that the government sponsor projects like financial assistance, tax breaks, or even the establishment of a fund to promote well-run festivals in order to preserve Ghana’s standing as a top vacation spot in December.
“We need to put our money where our mouth is. If as a state or collectively as a country we’re still interested in keeping our positioning as a major holiday-maker spot in December, then there has to be a certain level of investment from the state.
“Probably the state would have to begin funding these initiatives or creating a relief of sorts, like tax rebates and stuff.
“Tax rebates could be won, but it could float a fund, for instance, I mean through the banks where some of these festivals that are run properly and organized well could access funding to be able to put it together,” he said.
Baba Sadiq’s remarks follow the annual AfroNation music festival’s relocation to Nigeria.
The festival made a big splash internationally when it debuted in Ghana in 2019 during the Year of Return. However, the 2022 event was unexpectedly cancelled and given no reason.
