Goge Africa rebrands, as 20th anniversary celebration beckons

Ahead of its 20th anniversary celebration holding later in 2019, Goge Africa, Nigeria’s foremost culture and tourism TV programme has rebranded with the unveiling of a new logo and brand identity. The session also featured screening of an interesting video, which chronicled the brand’s adventurous journey over the past 19 years.

Held at the Lagos office of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) Ikoyi, the ceremony was an opportunity for the initiators Nneka and Isaac Moses to share their experiences on the show, which hit the airwaves on October 1, 1999. Though challenging, Goge Africa, to the initiators, is a passion too good to let go.

Recalling their milestones on the project, Nneka Isaac-Moses, Managing Director of the outfit, explained the imperative to rebrand the business and refocus her key services in order to better contribute to enterprise development through job creation. She emphasised that tourism and culture provide strong catalyst for growing the Nigerian economy, as well as other economies in Africa.

Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer of Goge Africa Metche Isaac Moses explained the focus areas for the brand to include tourism, events, festivals, culture, consultancy, media, production and a digital craft store.

According to the celebrity couple, the 20th anniversary of Goge Africa will feature an anniversary gala, tourism and culture symposium/conference, boat cruise and an African tour to select cities. In addition, the non-profit arm of the organisation, Goge Africa Foundation will have an outreach for youths, while a workshop will be organised for culture journalists, who have followed the brand for years.

They expressed their willingness to partner more corporate organisations and individuals interested in exploring opportunities on the sector. The couple also emphasised the need for more young people to contribute innovative ways to develop the sector.

On the willingness of the government to invest in the sector in order for the economy to reap benefits of tourism and culture like other climes, Nneka Isaac Moses said, “We did not wait for government investment to begin. Just like Nollywood did not. We will continue to promote tourism until we get the commensurate interest and support to develop tourism and culture in Nigeria.”

Meanwhile, the new season of Goge Africa will witness slight changes, as the crew intends to carry the public along in their programming.“We want to work with young people, who understand their culture and are familiar with tourist sites in their location; they will be joining us on the journey. So, unlike when we research and come on air to educate viewers, these volunteers will be the ones speaking to us about their culture and tradition; we will all learn from them. This is part of our effort to ensure we get authentic information about locations we visit, as well as an opportunity for us to carry our viewers along,” she said.