More than 1,000 artists, designers, performers and cultural entrepreneurs in Lagos have gained new skills and market opportunities through the state government’s ‘Skill Up Lagos’ initiative.
The programme, delivered under the Lagos Cultural Mission framework, was designed to give emerging creatives the practical training and support needed to turn talent into sustainable livelihoods.
“The initiative was designed to equip emerging creatives with the skills and opportunities needed to thrive in the industry,” said the Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Tourism, Arts and Culture, Idris Aregbe, at the 2026 Ministerial Press Briefing in Alausa.
Over the past two years, participants have been trained across the creative value chain, positioning them to earn from Lagos’s growing cultural and entertainment economy.
The empowerment push extends beyond the arts. Through the ‘Cook Lagos, Eat Lagos’ initiative, the state is creating economic opportunities for food vendors, chefs, agro-entrepreneurs and hospitality operators while promoting local culinary heritage.
“This initiative places Lagos cuisine on the global tourism map, celebrating local culinary traditions while creating economic opportunities for food vendors, chefs, agro-entrepreneurs and hospitality businesses,” Aregbe said.
The programme’s three pillars – ‘Cook Lagos’, ‘Eat Lagos’ and ‘Grow Lagos’ – link culinary education, food tourism and agricultural enterprise to expand income streams for residents.
Community-level empowerment was also visible at the 2025 Kayo-Kayo Festival in Epe, where the government partnered with tourism influencers to boost trade at the historic Oja Chief fish market.
“In a remarkable community-centred intervention, the office coordinated free fish delivery to the doorsteps of customers, directly boosting the commercial earnings of the women traders at the market,” Aregbe explained.
He added that recipients also received commendation letters recognising their contributions. “This gesture was not ceremonial; it was a deliberate act of governance that uplifts the women who form the backbone of Lagos’s cultural identity.”
