Business
Plateau to Host Nigeria’s First International Coffee Festival in August
Plateau State will host Nigeria’s maiden International Coffee Festival from August 28 to 30, 2025, at Langfield, Little Rayfield, Jos. Organized by Lingzhi Global Nigeria Ltd., the event seeks to reposition coffee from an overlooked crop into a catalyst for economic growth, job creation, and cultural exchange.
Addressing journalists, Blessing Nanman, Chief Executive Officer of Lingzhi Global, described the festival as “a legacy project” that will rotate annually across Nigeria’s 36 states, beginning with Plateau. “This is not just a beverage festival. It’s about empowerment, job creation, mindset shift, and national development. Plateau State is taking the lead to inspire others,” she said.
Participants from over 30 countries, including coffee powerhouses such as Brazil, are expected to attend. The three-day program will feature barista competitions, tastings, workshops, cultural exhibitions, and training sessions, giving visitors a full coffee experience from planting to roasting, packaging, branding, and sales. Traditional Plateau dishes paired with locally brewed coffee will also be showcased.
Nanman outlined post-event plans that include establishing 821 coffee shops nationwide, introducing mobile coffee carts, creating coffee education centers, and offering start-up grants to coffee and chocolate entrepreneurs. These initiatives are projected to generate more than 10,000 jobs within three years.
For local farmers, the festival represents renewed hope. Mr. Fei-Ishaku Davou, Chairman of the Plateau State Chapter of the National Coffee and Tea Association of Nigeria, recounted past challenges, including a 2005 incident in which a farmer burned his 10,000-seedling coffee farm due to lack of market access. “We have the farmers and the foundation. Now it’s time to build,” he said.
The Plateau State Government has pledged its support, describing the initiative as a tool for youth empowerment and economic revival. Nanven Barko, Chairman of the local organizing committee, added, “We are not just creating jobs. We are reviving our economy. We are uplifting the naira. Coffee can once again be our pride.”
Organizers say Plateau’s altitude, fertile soil, and favorable climate position it as Nigeria’s coffee capital. With global attention set to turn to Jos in August, the state aims to brew more than coffee — it hopes to brew opportunity, innovation, and national pride.
For vendor bookings and participation, call 07044298455 or 09021412121.
Tony Elumelu played a supreme role in getting investment bank Afrinvest back on track in 2011 after the global financial meltdown pushed the investment bank to the brink, its chief executive recalled in a letter to the tycoon seen by PREMIUM TIMES.
The multisectoral magnate, who is the top shareholder of United Bank for Africa, the Transcorp Group, and Seplat Energy, granted a soft loan of $1 million to Ike Chioke, the CEO of the financial institution, as a mark of urgent support when the firm direly needed the cash to recapitalise, the latter said.
“Fifteen years ago, Afrinvest was navigating one of the most challenging periods in its history, as we struggled to rebuild and recapitalise the business in the aftermath of the global financial crisis,” Mr Chioke said.
“At that critical juncture, when the future was far from certain, you made the remarkable decision to lend me US$1 million of your personal funds. You placed your confidence not simply in the prospects of a business but in me as an individual, my integrity, my determination and my conviction that Afrinvest could emerge stronger from adversity.”
This June, Mr Chioke eventually completed the repayment of the credit, according to the letter, describing the gesture as an extraordinary act of friendship, generosity and trust.
READ ALSO: Afrinvest repays undocumented $1 million from Elumelu with interest
Mr Elumelu, whose economic vision is anchored on what he calls “Africapitalism” – an investment philosophy that prioritises the private sector’s role in democratising the wealth Africa needs to power large-scale growth, has been involved in active philanthropic initiatives on the continent.
In March, his foremost charity project, the Tony Elumelu Foundation, turned sixteen, and he said the initiative had disbursed over $100 million in seed capital to 24,000 entrepreneurs in Africa and created more than 1.5 million jobs over the period.
The foundation expects to fund an additional 3,200 entrepreneurs this year, it said in September.
Mr Chioke applauded the profound impact Mr Elumelu’s financial assistance has had on Afrinvest, notably transforming it into a diversified regional financial services group with an expanding universe of clients and operations in asset management, investment banking, research & consulting, and securities trading.
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