From Port Elizabeth, South Africa, where it held its last edition, foremost pan-African reward scheme, the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) is repeating a prefix, with plans to host its 2016 edition in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the award show will hold on June 11, to be preceeded with a Nominations Gala on May 11; another suffix in date, that appears a stylish coincidence.
As part of the pre-AMAA activities, the state will host a sponsorship night in conjunction with the Africa Film Academy to mobilize corporate sponsors for the awards while interestingly, the braodcast mileage for this year’s show, being the 12th edition, also holds so much promise for the enduring scheme, with the rebranded Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) as major broadcast partner, for Live Telecast to over 100 million people across the globe. As if that is not enough, Africa Magic, OHTV UK, SABC South Africa and ONTV have also signed on as media partners.
There are indications AMAA has found a new home in the Garden City of Port Harcourt, capital of Rivers State, going by a statement jointly signed by the State Commissioner of Culture & Tourism, Mrs. Tonye Briggs Oniyide on behalf of Governor Wike and the founder of AMAA, Ms. Peace Anyiam-Osigwe.
Briggs said: “We are repositioning Rivers State as a state ready for business to Nigerians and the rest of the world and our partnership with AMAA will become a veritable platform to attract tourists, global and Nigeria icons in business and the entertainment industry. We want to showcase Rivers State as a peaceful place where socio-economic activities thrive and also the hospitality of our people.
There is a huge economy around entertainment and show business in Port Harcourt. While our state is known for her hydrocarbon resources, His Excellency, Governor Wike’s administration through the Ministry of Culture & Tourism through initiatives like AMAA wants the world to know and take advantage of the business opportunities that abound in Rivers State.”
Also speaking on the new partnership, Anyiam-Osigwe said it marks the beginning of a new phase in the journey of the continental awards that started 12years ago: “We are very happy with this development and express our gratitude to Governor Wike and the good people of Rivers State. We value this partnership and we promise that it will be a rewarding one for the government and people of this great state.”
Recall that AMAA had held eight editions in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, while three other editions took place in Abuja, Lagos and South Africa respectively.
The previous nomination nights had taken place in Accra, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Banjul, Lilongwe, Ouagadougou and Los Angeles.
Before last year’s nomination show which took place in Los Angeles, United States, the pre-event Gala had rotated venues from Accra, Ghana; Nairobi, Kenya; Johannesburg, South Africa; Banjul, Gambia; Lilongwe, Malawi and Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
