AFRIMA Founder Mike Dada has secured a new continental leadership role after the African Collaborations Group (ACG) appointed him Vice President of African Collaborations and a member of its Advisory Board.
The appointment strengthens ACG’s efforts to connect Africa’s music, sports and entertainment industries with major investment and infrastructure development opportunities across the continent.
Dada is the President and Founder of the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), established in 2014 in partnership with the African Union Commission (AUC). The platform celebrates African musical talent, promotes cultural exchange and helps showcase the continent’s music industry to international audiences.
AFRIMA now reaches audiences in more than 84 countries through live broadcasts. It also brings together musicians, industry professionals, delegates and production teams from different parts of Africa.
Beyond his work with AFRIMA, Dada holds a leadership position in the African Union’s Pan-African Congress. He led the development of the AU’s Plan of Action on Culture and Creative Industries, which African Heads of State adopted in 2023.
The policy document provides a framework for developing Africa’s cultural and creative economy into a stronger industrial sector.
He also serves on the Africa Policy Advisory Board (APAB) of the ONE Campaign, where he contributes to discussions on international policies affecting Africa’s development.
Mike Dada’s Appointment Strengthens ACG’s Creative Industry Strategy
ACG said Dada’s appointment reinforces its vision of developing sports and entertainment as interconnected industries rather than treating them as separate sectors.
While AFRIMA has created a platform for promoting African music globally, ACG focuses on developing the physical infrastructure and investment structures needed to support the continent’s wider entertainment and sports economy.
These include integrated sport and entertainment districts designed to accommodate events, commercial activities, production facilities and other revenue-generating businesses.
The group believes Dada’s experience in cultural development, policy formulation and continental industry networking will strengthen its ability to develop projects that meet Africa’s economic and institutional priorities.
His legal background and expertise in the creative economy are also expected to support the structuring of major projects across different African markets.
Speaking on the appointment, ACG Founder and Executive Chairman, Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard, described Dada’s experience as a valuable addition to the organisation.
He said Dada combines leadership in continental cultural infrastructure with high-level policy experience through his work with the African Union.
Pompigne-Mognard noted that AFRIMA has built an important platform for African music, while Dada’s involvement in the AU helped shape policies guiding the development of the creative economy.
He added that ACG needs this combination of industry experience and policy knowledge as it develops investment-ready sports and entertainment districts across Africa.
According to him, Dada’s relationships within the music industry and understanding of continental cultural priorities will help connect ACG’s projects with the people and institutions needed to make them successful.
ACG Targets Africa’s Growing Sports and Entertainment Economy
The ACG Advisory Board provides strategic direction as the organisation develops large-scale sports and entertainment district projects.
Its approach brings together governments, development finance institutions, private investors, sports organisations and infrastructure partners to create financially sustainable projects.
Africa’s sports economy could reach $20 billion by 2035. However, the continent still lacks the integrated infrastructure needed to fully support the sector’s expansion.
ACG aims to address this challenge by moving beyond the traditional development of individual stadiums and sports facilities.
Instead, it promotes mixed-use districts that combine sports venues, entertainment facilities, commercial developments and other businesses capable of generating long-term revenue.
The organisation’s collaborative model involves government agencies, public-private partnership authorities, regulators, investors, developers, architects, engineers and legal advisers.
It also works to bring sports federations, leagues, event promoters, broadcasters, academic institutions and host communities into the project development process.
Through these partnerships, ACG seeks to move projects from initial concepts to feasibility studies, investment readiness and eventual implementation.
Dada’s appointment is expected to strengthen this strategy by bringing additional expertise in African music, cultural diplomacy and creative industry development.