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LAGOS, Nigeria — LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) – Nigerians have attempted to set two Guinness world records in the past week, with one dancing for seven days and a film showing to an audience of more than 51,000 people, the largest ever recorded.
Since 2023, when the famous Nigerian chef Hilda Baci cooked for 93 hours and 11 minutes, setting a world record for the longest cooking marathon and becoming a viral sensation around the world, there have been many efforts in Nigeria, including the longest crying session, laundry marathon and massage marathon.
Nigeria has about 220 million people and has one of the youngest populations in the world. The country has long been seen as an African powerhouse in the entertainment and creative industries but a lack of government investment and support has left the country lagging global peers.
The flood of Guinness record applications is a way for creative people in Nigeria to seek global recognition for their talents, a recognition they say leaves them at home, according to analysts and partners.
“The Guinness World Record is a global platform to recognize the work,” said Benjamin Daniel, the man seeking the world record of the dance who has worked with the famous Kuti family. Guinness World Records was in the process of confirming the record on Wednesday.
“The people who are supposed to take care of us as people are not doing it. So if the locals don’t listen to us, let’s run to the world,” said Daniel about the situation of dancers in Nigeria.
In the past ten years, Nigeria has been struggling with a shrinking economy and rising inflation. Unemployment has steadily increased, forcing the youth to leave the country and seek opportunities elsewhere in a widespread syndrome called “japa” in Nigerian parlance, meaning “escape.”
Analysts say the benefits of the Guinness World Record can make up for a lack of institutional support locally.
“What is different is the perceived value and the reach of the recognition. A Guinness World Record holder can go anywhere and apply for the recognition, compared to what they achieved in their own country,” said David Akinfenwa, a public relations agency based in Lagos.
Guinness World Records told The Associated Press that 5,042 people in Nigeria applied for the record between January 2022 and September 2026, with 3,346 more attempts. That leaves Nigeria in seventh place among countries in terms of applicant volume and in eighth place among the number of attempts.
“Guinness World Records has seen a strong commitment to record breaking from people in Nigeria across a wide range of sectors. It is always inspiring to see the creativity, determination and ambition that people bring to their endeavours, and all entries are assessed against the same global criteria and evidence requirements,” the organization said.
Nora Awolowo is one of the filmmakers of the film Black Market which set the record for the world premiere of a film, with 51,258 people in the audience.
“No one can tell me that anything is impossible,” she said. “There’s no place I can walk into now that if I tell you what I did with my film, you wouldn’t respect my name.”
