Vice-President Kashim Shettima has urged African countries to convert their growing global cultural influence into sustainable economic wealth by building creative industries that generate jobs, attract investment and expand international trade.
Shettima made the call on Thursday, November 5, 2026, at the opening of the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) Weekend 2026 at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts, National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos. He said Africa must move beyond celebrating its creative achievements to turning global recognition into contracts, markets and lasting prosperity, stressing that the continent’s talents in film, music, fashion and literature required deliberate investment and stronger institutions.
The vice-president said President Bola Tinubu’s administration was strengthening intellectual property protection, widening access to finance for creative enterprises and positioning Nigeria to benefit from creative trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). He also commended the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), which he said had committed $2 billion to Africa’s creative industries through 2027.
Shettima said CANEX Weekend 2026 would help lay the groundwork for the fifth Intra-African Trade Fair scheduled for Lagos in 2027, urging African governments to dismantle barriers restricting creative trade across the continent.
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