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AFCON 2023: Nigerian Content Creators See 200% Rise in Revenue, Views

By Adedapo Adesanya
Content creators in Nigeria saw a 200 per cent increase in views and revenue between December 2023 and February 2024, a new study shared with Business Post showed.
According to new data released by StarNews Mobile, an African video streaming platform, content creators across Africa experienced a 300 per cent surge in revenues during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) held between January 13 and February 11, 2024, reaffirming the massive surge in consumption of hyper-localized content from the continent.
Based on metrics from StarNews Mobile’s platform, creators in Nigeria were only outshone by their peers in Cameroon and Cote D’Ivoire which saw 300 per cent and 400 per cent increases in viewers and revenue respectively between December 2023 and February 2024.
In total, the company streamed more than 4 million pieces of content per month to football fans via its AFCON-related channels, amassing 500,000 subscribers for content specifically related to the tournament.
“Whilst one of the main conversations of this year’s AFCON has been the commercial growth of African sport, these statistics reinforce the revolution in another one of the continent’s fastest-growing sectors – the content space.
“Based on the data, there’s undoubtedly a huge demand for quality, hyper-localized content from African creators but if we want to effectively unlock the full potential of this market opportunity, it’s vital we empower both sides of the marketplace,” the chief executive and founder of StarNews Mobile, Mr Guy Kamgaing, said.
“With this in mind, it’s simply not enough to just provide a platform for African creators to express themselves. We need to invest in their success by equipping them with the financial stability, independence, and freedom to create so they can fully leverage the massive value the continent and its diaspora’s 1.2 billion consumers hold,” he added.
Launched in 2017, StarNews Mobile empowers African content creators with the unique opportunity to monetize their work through a subscription model, boasting over 4 million subscribers and a thriving community of more than 120 content creators.
With a strong presence across six countries including Cameroon, Nigeria, Côte D’Ivoire, Congo, Benin and Ghana, the platform has also established key partnerships with major telecom operators such as MTN and Orange.
To date, StarNews Mobile has secured over $8 million in funding with its most recent raise – a $3 million pre-Series A funding round in October 2023 – led by Janngo Capital with participation from French football players Aurélien Tchouaméni, Jules Koundé, and Mike Maignan.
The global creator economy stands at an estimated worth of $20 billion and with the world’s youngest population, there is an emerging class of African content creators ready to capitalise on the sector’s potential. However, despite this, differences in international payment methods, cellular data limits, and even certain cultural differences establish major barriers for African creators and influencers to monetize their content with traditional platforms.
However, through its partnerships with local mobile providers, StarNews Mobile can bill subscribers directly to their phone and leverages SMS technology to eliminate the roadblocks surrounding payments and data limits respectively. Creators can also charge their followers a small daily or weekly fee, limiting their reliance on ads and elevating the content of the quality provided as they focus on engaging and retaining their followers.
Leveraging its partnership with Orange – one of the main sponsors of AFCON 2023 – StarNews Mobile launched a series of initiatives to boost fan engagement with this year’s tournament including creating physical fan zones across its markets, data subscription bundles and virtual channels on its platform dedicated to the tournament.
According to sports analytics platform, Opta, the 2023 AFCON has been one of the most exciting in the tournament’s history with this year’s group stage alone recording an average goals-per-game rate of 2.47, making this AFCON’s highest-scoring tournament in 15 years.
With the Confederation of African Football(CAF), the organisers of AFCON 2023, securing a 100 per cent increase in applications for media accreditations to cover the event alongside extensive global broadcasting deals, the tournament has broken into a new threshold of worldwide popularity.
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Dominion City 2025 Camp Meeting Starts April 17

By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The 2025 camp meeting of Dominion City Church will commence from Thursday, April 17 to Monday, April 21 at Golden Heart Place, Km 22, Lekki-Epe Expressway, beside Lagos Business School, Ajah, Lagos.
The Senior Pastor of Dominion City and President of the Dominion Leadership Institute, Pastor David Ogbueli, will lead the event alongside other anointed ministers, including Apostle Michael Orokpo, Pastor Randy Mitchell from the USA, Apostle Ben Noobe from South Africa, Reverend Samson Ajetomobi, and Rev Pade Tokun.
The power-packed spiritual gathering is designed to ignite revival, salvation, deliverance, miracles, and breakthroughs in the lives of attendees.
Every year, the event attracts thousands of worshippers at the venue of the programme and virtually and the church said it would not be different this year.
Attendees will experience an atmosphere of deep worship with renowned gospel ministers such as GUC, Anthony Kani, Sunmisola Agbebi, and David Nkennor and the DC Angels, a statement disclosed.
There will also be specialized training sessions for ministers of the gospel, career professionals, social workers, entrepreneurs, children and teen workers, etc. for exponential growth.
As part of Dominion City’s commitment to ensuring accessibility, free transportation will be provided to and from the venue.
“We believe this Camp Meeting will be a divine appointment where lives are transformed, faith is strengthened, and destinies are realigned.
“We invite everyone seeking spiritual renewal and breakthrough to join us for this life-changing encounter,” the cleric stated.
With sessions at 8 am and 5 pm daily, the event will officially commence with an opening session on Thursday, April 17 at 5 pm.
A key highlight of the program will be the Good Friday Healing and Miracle Night on Friday, April 18, at 5 pm, an extraordinary session dedicated to divine healing and supernatural encounters.
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Nigeria’s Mining Marshals Arrest 327 Illegal Miners

By Adedapo Adesanya
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Mr Dele Alake, has announced the arrest of 327 illegal miners across Nigeria since 2024.
Mr Alake disclosed this at a recent news conference to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the operations of the Mining Marshals (MM).
He stressed that while the MM has “arrested 327 suspects for illegal mining,” the ministry, in partnership with other agencies, has prosecuted 143 individuals across the country since the MM began operations in 2024.
Recall that the Mining Marshals was inaugurated on March 21, 2024, to serve as a security outfit tracking illegal mining in the solid minerals sector.
The security personnel are mainly from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC). The mines marshal devised to be an inter-agency security outfit also incorporates special operatives from other security agencies like the Nigeria Police, the army, amongst others.
Speaking at the event, Mr Alake stated that the Marshals’ key target for 2025 is to secure the conviction of the 327 individuals already arraigned in court.
According to him, this will enhance deterrence in the mining sector and enforce compliance with the law.
He appreciated the contributions of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigerian Army, highlighting that their efforts have helped in the drive to sanitize the solid minerals sector.
“This month, the Federal High Court in Ilorin, Kwara State, sentenced two foreigners, Yang Chao and Wu Shan Chuan, to prison for illegal mining of solid minerals following a case prosecuted by the EFCC.
“We also commend the EFCC for its diligent prosecution of illegal miners.
“In May last year, the EFCC successfully prosecuted and secured the conviction of two other foreigners, Duan Ya Hong and Xiao Yi, to one year of imprisonment for illegal mining at another Federal High Court, also sitting in Ilorin, Kwara State,” he said.
The Minister stressed that in the last year, the MM has tackled the severity of illegal mining, which, according to him, “has been exacerbated by companies collaborating with individual miners to carry out the act.”
“According to our records, the MM recovered over 98 sites last year. This has enabled many license owners to return to sites and resume operations.
“This will ultimately improve royalties and raise the contribution of solid minerals to the country’s revenue.
“So far, the MM has identified 457 suspected illegal mining sites and has improved intelligence gathering on these sites,” he added.
Mr Alake explained that MM’s major areas of operation have been across 10 states: Niger, Kogi, Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Ondo, Kaduna, Enugu, Abia, Kwara, and the Federal Capital Territory.
He added that in 2025, the outfit is expected to increase its engagements in other parts of the nation.
He assured that the number of personnel would be expanded, and more logistics, including vehicles and other equipment, would be made available to the Mining Marshals to strengthen their operations.
On his part, the Commandant of the Mining Marshals, Mr John Attah, thanked the minister for his support and urged the public to see their operations as a national project.
General
Amnesty International Wants Allegations Against Akpabio Probed

By Adedapo Adesanya
The Amnesty International has called for a thorough, independent investigation into the allegation made by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against the Senate President, Mr Goodwill Akpabio.
The human rights watchdog made this demand in a statement on X (formerly Twitter) by the Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Mr Isa Sanusi.
“Amnesty International calls on the Nigerian authorities to immediately institute an independent and impartial investigation into the allegations of sexual harassment by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against the President of the Senate Godswill Akpabio,” he said.
Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan, a People’s Democratic Party (PDP) lawmaker representing Kogi Central, accused Mr Akpabio of depriving her of her right to represent her people after she rejected sexual advances from Akpabio.
She alleged that Mr Akpabio had been denying her the opportunity to contribute to debates and table matters affecting her constituents on the floor of the Senate.
Mr Akpabio since denied the allegations.
“At no time did I ever harass any woman. I was raised very well by my late single mother, and I have always upheld respect for women. I was even awarded the most gender-friendly governor in Nigeria,” he said at the March 5 plenary.
The Senate later went on to suspend the lawmaker over what it described as her “unruly conduct.”
In response, Amnesty International warned that, “The weight and scale of the allegations of the sexual harassment are one more pressing reason for establishing an independent, resourceful and impartial investigation.
“The National Assembly must not continue to look away while the allegations remain and are being trivialized, unaddressed and ignored.
“Blatant failure of the authorities to investigate the allegations raised by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan will have devastating consequences, that include perpetuating a system that makes it increasingly difficult for survivors of sexual harassment to get justice, while allowing perpetrators to get away with gross human rights violations.
“This is one case that the authorities can use to show that there is zero tolerance for sexual harassment – no matter who is involved.
“The fear of not being believed, or even being blamed, is already creating a dangerous culture of silence that prevents women who faced sexual harassment from seeking justice. The tide of sexual impunity against women and girls must be turned now,” Mr Sanusi stated.
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