FACT-CHECK: Claim by Reno Omokri That ‘Detty December’ Is Africa’s Biggest Tourist Event Is Misleading
By: Peter Emmanuel |
CLAIM
Reno Omokri, Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Mexico, claimed during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Sunday, September 13, 2026, that Lagos’ “Detty December” is the biggest tourist event in Africa.
While making the claim, Omokri cited the number of visitors who come to Lagos during the December festive period as evidence of the scale of the event.
The claim refers to the large number of Nigerians in the diaspora and other visitors who travel to Lagos during December for concerts, nightlife, parties, beach events, cultural activities and other entertainment programmes.
VERDICT
MISLEADING
VERIFICATION
DNN FactCheck examined the claim and found that it is misleading because it treats “Detty December,” a broad festive period involving numerous activities across Lagos, as a single organised tourist event.
According to a Premium Times report published on January 13, 2025, Lagos recorded an estimated 1.2 million visitors during the 2024 Detty December period, based on a report by advisory firm MO Africa Company Limited. The report said 60 per cent of the visitors were domestic tourists, while the remaining visitors came from outside the country. “Premium Times report on Detty December visitors” (https://reference-url-citation.invalid/0)
The Lagos State Government, in a statement published on January 17, 2025, also said more than 1.2 million fun-seekers from Nigeria and the diaspora visited Lagos during the 2024 Detty December period.
The figures establish that Lagos attracts a substantial number of visitors during the festive period. However, they do not mean that 1.2 million people attended one single event.
WHAT DOES “DETTY DECEMBER” ACTUALLY REPRESENT?
A Guardian report published on December 28, 2024, described Detty December as a month-long collection of festivities in Lagos involving parties, concerts and other entertainment activities. The report also noted the influx of visitors from the Nigerian diaspora during the period.
Similarly, a Condé Nast Traveler report published in December 2024 described Detty December as a period marked by an influx of travellers to Lagos and a wide range of activities, including beach parties, music concerts, art and fashion events and nightlife.
These reports show that Detty December is better understood as an umbrella term for a broad festive period rather than the name of one centrally organised event.
This distinction is important because the estimated 1.2 million visitors associated with Detty December represents people visiting Lagos and participating in different activities across the city, rather than attendance at one particular festival.
COMPARISON WITH OTHER AFRICAN EVENTS
To assess the claim that Detty December is the “biggest” tourist event in Africa, DNN FactCheck compared the available figures with attendance figures reported for established organised festivals on the continent.
According to Morocco’s official government portal, the 2025 Mawazine Festival attracted more than 3.75 million spectators during its nine-day run from June 20 to 28, 2025. The festival was held across venues in Rabat and Salé and featured more than 100 artists.
The 3.75 million figure refers to attendance at a defined and organised festival over a specified nine-day period. It is therefore not the same type of measurement as the estimated 1.2 million visitors associated with Lagos’ wider Detty December season.
Carnival Calabar provides another Nigerian comparison. According to a Premium Times report published on January 5, 2026, the Cross River State Tourism Bureau estimated that 780,000 on-site spectators attended the Cultural Carnival, Children’s Carnival, Bikers’ Carnival and main Carnival Calabar events in 2025.
Carnival Calabar is a state-organised cultural carnival with defined events and programmes. This makes its attendance figures different from the broader visitor estimate attached to Detty December.
WHAT THE COMPARISON SHOWS
The available figures show that Detty December is a major tourism and entertainment phenomenon, but they do not establish that it is Africa’s single biggest tourist event.
The estimated 1.2 million visitors associated with Lagos during the 2024 Detty December period is substantial. However, the figure covers a broad festive period involving multiple events and activities across the city.
By comparison, Morocco’s Mawazine Festival recorded more than 3.75 million spectators during one organised nine-day festival in 2025.
The figures cannot therefore be ranked against each other without first establishing a common measurement standard. The claim does not specify whether “biggest” refers to total visitors, event attendance, international tourists, tourism revenue, economic impact or another measure.
According to a Premium Times report published on January 5, 2026, the Cross River State Tourism Bureau estimated that 780,000 on-site spectators attended the Cultural Carnival, Children’s Carnival, Bikers’ Carnival and main Carnival Calabar events in 2025.
The figure relates to attendance at specific organised carnival events, while the 1.2 million Detty December figure represents visitors associated with an entire festive season involving multiple activities across Lagos.
WHAT WE FOUND
DNN FactCheck found that Omokri’s claim is based on a genuine and significant tourism trend but goes beyond what the available evidence establishes.
According to a Premium Times report published on January 13, 2025, Lagos recorded an estimated 1.2 million visitors during the 2024 Detty December period, based on figures attributed to MO Africa. The Lagos State Government separately cited a similar figure, reporting that more than 1.2 million fun-seekers from Nigeria and the diaspora visited Lagos during the period.
However, Detty December is not one single event. It is a broad festive period involving concerts, parties, nightlife, cultural activities and other events organised by different promoters across Lagos. Therefore, the 1.2 million figure represents visitors associated with the wider festive period rather than attendance at one centrally organised tourist event.
The claim also does not define the measurement used to determine that Detty December is Africa’s “biggest” tourist event. Attendance at a specific event, international tourist arrivals, tourism revenue and wider economic impact are different measures and could produce different rankings.
According to Morocco’s official government portal in a report published on July 2, 2025, the 2025 Mawazine Festival attracted more than 3.75 million spectators over nine days in Rabat and Salé. The figure represents attendance at a single organised festival, unlike the 1.2 million Detty December figure, which covers visitors associated with a broader festive period involving multiple events.
This comparison shows that the 1.2 million visitor figure, while substantial, cannot on its own establish that Detty December is Africa’s biggest tourist event. The two figures measure different things, and there is no common measurement in the claim that allows a reliable ranking of the events.”
CONCLUSION
Reno Omokri’s claim that “Detty December” is Africa’s biggest tourist event is misleading.
The available evidence confirms that Lagos attracts a signif⁸icant number of visitors during the December festive period and that the season generates substantial tourism and entertainment activity.
However, Detty December is not one single organised event. It is a broad festive period made up of numerous concerts, parties, festivals and other activities.
The claim therefore compares an aggregate seasonal visitor figure with attendance figures for individual organised festivals without establishing a common measurement standard.
While Detty December is undoubtedly one of Africa’s major festive tourism phenomena, the available evidence does not establish that it is the single biggest tourist event in Africa.
Verdict: MISLEADING
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