GEW Arewa Festival 2025

The Arewa Festival, held on 22nd and 23rd November 2025 across 19 Northern states, successfully celebrated the region’s rich heritage of trade, culture, and entrepreneurship. Organized by Tripoint Academy Nigeria in partnership with GEN Nigeria as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2025, the festival revived the ancient spirit of the Trans-Saharan trade under the theme “Reliving the African Trade.” The festival attracted an estimated 200,000 participants and over 5,000 businesses, including SMEs, artisans, farmers, youth innovators, and cultural practitioners from Adamawa, Kano, Nasarawa, Sokoto, Bauchi, Plateau, Katsina, Taraba, Kaduna, Niger, Kebbi, Gombe, Zamfara, Benue, Jigawa, Borno, Yobe, Kogi, and Kwara. Attendees enjoyed a vibrant atmosphere of exhibitions, cultural showcases, culinary experiences, and creative performances, highlighting the economic and artistic diversity of Northern Nigeria. Distinguished guest speakers enriched the festival’s intellectual and entrepreneurial tone. Dr. Nneka Okekearu, Director of the Enterprise Development Centre, offered insightful perspectives on innovation and enterprise growth, while Mrs. Chinwe Ezenwa, Managing Director of Lelook Nigeria Limited, delivered the keynote address, emphasizing the power of regional collaboration and creativity in driving sustainable economic development. Supported by traditional rulers and Emirate Councils, the festival strengthened community ties and showcased the region’s resilience and entrepreneurial potential. It also reinforced connections to the AREWATECH development blueprint, which focuses on agriculture, trade, entrepreneurship, creativity, and hospitality as pathways for long-term regional growth. The 2025 edition of the Arewa Festival stands as one of Northern Nigeria’s most impactful cultural and commercial gatherings, reaffirming its role as a unifying platform for innovation, culture, and economic opportunity. This year’s festival also marked the official launch of the Creative Business Cup (CBC) Arewa, an initiative designed to empower creative entrepreneurs across the 19 Northern states with training, mentorship, and access to global opportunities. Introduced as a strategic extension of the festival’s focus on trade, culture, and entrepreneurship, CBC Arewa provides a platform for young innovators to transform their ideas into scalable businesses and positions the region more prominently within the global creative economy