Sanwo-Olu, AFRIMA Founder, California Governor, Afretrade CEO, Others to Speak at California–Lagos Summit

Sunday Ehigiator

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Founder and President of the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), Mike Dada; California Governor, Gavin Newsom; and Afretrade Chief Executive Officer, Lekan Salaam, are expected to headline the California–Lagos Business & Investment Summit scheduled for September 17 and 18, 2026, in Sacramento and San Francisco, California.

The two-day summit, themed “Building the California–Nigeria Business Bridge,” is expected to bring together business leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, policymakers, professionals and members of the African diaspora to explore opportunities for trade, investment and cross-border collaboration.

The event is a private sector-led initiative powered by Afretrade, the US Diaspora United Chamber of Commerce, NIED Group and the Office of Diaspora Affairs of Lagos State.

According to the organisers, the summit is designed to strengthen the economic relationship between California and Lagos while creating new platforms for business partnerships, investment and cultural exchange.

Dada is expected to speak on “From Culture to Capital: Unlocking the California–Lagos Creative Economy,” with a presentation focusing on investment opportunities in music, film, intellectual property and Africa-America cultural commerce.

His presentation will examine how the creative industries can drive economic growth and create new channels for investment and business partnerships between Africa and the United States.

“Africa is no longer simply a source of creative content for the global market; Africa is a market, a talent hub and an investment destination,” Dada said.

He said the continent needed structures that would enable African creators to retain greater value from their intellectual property while attracting capital, technology and global partnerships to scale their businesses.

According to him, AFRIMA has spent the past 15 years helping to build bridges between African creativity, enterprise and global markets.

“AFRIMA perfectly aligns with the California Business and Investment Summit as both platforms share a common vision of positioning African businesses, talents and intellectual property for global trade competitiveness,” he said.

Other speakers and participants expected at the summit include Dr Charly Lemassi, Dr Badewa Adejugbe-Williams, Dr Jameine Sanwo-Olu, Victoria Remi Nkong, President of bridgeAfric, and Rory Douglas, CEO of Aqua Financial.

The summit will feature discussions on technology and fintech, trade and logistics, transportation, entertainment, agriculture, renewable energy, real estate and access to capital for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The main business programme is scheduled to run from 9am to 5pm and will feature keynote addresses, high-level discussions, panel sessions, capital-raising opportunities and business matchmaking.

An official celebration will follow at the historic Stanford Mansion, while the Gala and Award Night will take place at the Hyatt Regency Sacramento.

The programme will continue on September 18 with a high-level diplomatic and business networking reception in San Francisco.

In a related development, AFRIMA has entered into a strategic partnership with the California–Lagos Business & Investment Summit, further strengthening the focus on the creative economy as a key component of the emerging California–Nigeria business relationship.

Speaking on the partnership, AFRIMA Regional Director, Central Africa, Nde Ndifonka, said music business development remained central to the organisation’s mission.

“Music business advancement is one of the core seven pillars of AFRIMA, and that is why the AFRIMA Music Business Summit is an integral part of the main activities of the AFRIMA Awards,” Ndifonka said.

He said AFRIMA’s responsibility extended beyond celebrating artistes to helping build an ecosystem where African creativity could attract investment, create sustainable businesses and generate greater economic value.

“The California–Lagos Business & Investment Summit provides an important platform for that objective. California is a global centre of technology, capital and entertainment, while Lagos is one of Africa’s leading hubs for creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation,” he said.

Ndifonka added that connecting the two ecosystems could create opportunities across music, film, intellectual property, technology and cultural commerce.

Established in 2011 by the International Executive Committee of AFRIMA in partnership with the African Union, with its first edition held in 2014, AFRIMA has grown into a major continental music awards platform.

The 10th edition of the awards is scheduled for 2027, with build-up events under the RoadTo10thAFRIMA banner already held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire; and Casablanca and Rabat, Morocco.

The awards have previously been hosted in major African cities, including Lagos, Accra and Dakar, and are broadcast live in more than 84 countries.

The AFRIMA Music Business Summit, which brings together music executives, artistes, policymakers, investors and other industry stakeholders to address the commercial development of Africa’s music industry, is one of the organisation’s seven pillars.

The other pillars include the Music Awards, Music Festivals, AFRIMA Kreative Academy (TAKA), Talent Discovery and Promotion, Advisory and Policy Debates, and Advocacy.