Chidinma Iroegbu and Esther Oseyiomon
South Africa says it will use heritage, tourism and cultural exchange to strengthen the ties between its people and Nigerians, with both countries sharing long-standing connections in arts, film, music and culture.
Deputy High Commissioner of South Africa to Nigeria, Her Excellency Lindy Mminele, stated this on Wednesday, September 30, at the Heritage Day Celebration 2026 held at the South African High Commission in Abuja.
The celebration is held under the theme, “Celebrating Our Living Heritage: Strengthening the Ties That Bind Us,” which South Africa uses for its 2026 Heritage Month activities.
Mminele welcomes guests to “Ekhaya,” meaning home, describing the South African High Commission in Nigeria as a “home away from home” and acknowledging Nigeria’s historic support for South Africa’s democratic struggle.
She says Nigeria’s more than 250 ethnic groups, Nollywood, Afrobeats, cuisine, languages and traditions provide a rich cultural heritage that offers opportunities for continued cooperation between both countries.
The Abuja celebration reflects that exchange, with Nigerian and South African dishes served, music from both countries played, and guests experiencing aspects of their respective cultures, traditions and ways of life.
Mminele also recognises South African Tourism and Nigerian tourism organisations, including NANTA, NATOP and FTAN, for supporting tourism promotion and people-to-people relations between the two countries.
She says South Africa remains open to Nigerian tourists, citing Cape Town, Mpumalanga, Table Mountain, the Garden Route and Kruger National Park, alongside wine regions, beaches, wildlife and adventure activities.
“So our offerings of Mpumalanga or any other province of South Africa for tourism is open for business,” Mminele says, while urging Nigerian travellers and members of the diplomatic community to visit South Africa.
On cultural cooperation, she says both countries maintain an active relationship in music, film and the arts, noting that Nollywood productions are “very much loved in South Africa,” while their cultural institutions participate in each other’s film festivals under a Memorandum of Understanding.
She says South Africa participates in Nigeria’s Zuma Film Festival, while Nigerians attend film festivals in South Africa, including those in Durban, describing the cooperation as “very tight and ongoing.” Mminele concludes by invoking Ubuntu, saying, “We choose unity. We choose Ubuntu. We choose the ties that bind us together.”