…Seek stronger financing, skills, IP protection, infrastructure to turn Nigeria’s creative firepower into sustainable businesses
Segun Atanda/
Nigeria’s vast reservoir of creative talent will not, on its own, deliver a thriving creative economy unless it is backed by strong institutions, accessible finance, skilled manpower, intellectual property protection and efficient distribution platforms, industry stakeholders have said.
The stakeholders spoke at the second QEDNG Creative Powerhouse Summit, held on Tuesday at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Ikeja GRA, Lagos, where leading voices in Nigeria’s creative, business, finance and public sectors examined how the country can convert its cultural influence into sustainable economic value.
Organised by Mighty Media Plus Network Limited, publishers of QEDNG, the summit had as its theme, “Creativity, Culture and Nigeria’s Next Chapter.”
The gathering brought together filmmakers, music executives, content creators, journalists, business leaders, government officials and other industry players to interrogate the structures, financing, skills, intellectual property frameworks and platforms required to build a globally competitive creative economy.
‘Talent Without Structure Is Just a Hustle’
QEDNG publisher and convener of the summit, Olumide Iyanda, set the tone for the discussions, warning that institutional and structural deficiencies continued to frustrate the ambitions of thousands of talented Nigerians.
“This conversation is actually very personal for me. As I said here last year, I have been around this industry long enough to see talent sprout. I’ve also regrettably seen some of them wither before they could bloom. Not because they didn’t want to fly, but because the institutional and structural backbone that they need is just not there,” Iyanda said.
“For every Burna Boy, every Kiekie, every Chimamanda, every Kunle Afolayan, there are thousands who wish they could be like them. Some of them are in this room this morning.”
He called for stronger Nigerian-owned platforms capable of supporting, showcasing and distributing local creative works, arguing that the stories Nigerians tell about themselves must occupy a central place in the national conversation.
Representing the chairman of the summit, Demola Aladekomo, Managing Director of SmartCity Plc, Gabriel Ukachukwu, said Nigeria must deliberately build an ecosystem around its creative economy rather than continue to depend on individual talent and resilience.
“A creative economy requires infrastructure. It requires capital. It requires intellectual protection. It requires skills. It requires distribution. It requires technology. It requires serious business models,” Ukachukwu said.
Citing global figures, he said exports of creative services were estimated at $1.7 trillion in 2024, underscoring the growing importance of creativity to the world economy.
“It tells us that creativity is no longer at the margin of the global economy. It is a part of the global economy,” he said.
According to him, Nigeria must confront three fundamental questions: how to transform talent into enterprise, how to finance creativity, and how to protect and monetise intellectual property.
“Talent without structure is just a hustle. So how do we move from talent to enterprise? My second question is: How do we finance creativity? The third one is: How do we protect and monetise intellectual property?” he said.
Adebayo: Stories Can Shape Nations
Delivering the keynote address, National Coordinator of the Investment in Digital and Creative Enterprises programme, iDICE, Ife Adebayo, said Nigeria possessed enormous creative talent and cultural influence but lacked sufficient systems to translate those assets into economic power.
Adebayo cited the 1986 American blockbuster, Top Gun, to illustrate the capacity of storytelling to influence national image, culture and even economic and institutional outcomes.
He noted that the movie, which glamorised United States Navy fighter pilots, was followed by a reported surge in interest in joining the Navy.
“Think about that. The most powerful military on earth, with the largest budget in human history, confessing that its most effective recruiter was not a weapon, was not a general, was not a budget line. It was a story. It was culture,” he said.
Adebayo challenged Nigeria to imagine what its film, music, fashion, comedy and animation industries could accomplish if deliberately supported as instruments for projecting the country’s identity and influence globally.
He said the country was also paying a price for leaving some of its most consequential stories untold.
Recalling the death of a military officer he described as his godfather, S.K. Umaru, who was killed in an improvised explosive device blast while fighting insurgents in 2014, Adebayo lamented that the sacrifice of many Nigerians serving the country had yet to receive adequate creative documentation.
“What stays with me most is that this story has never been told. And he is one of thousands of men and women who have fought and who are fighting for this country as I stand speaking here to you today,” he said.
‘We Have the Voice, Others Built the Microphone’
Adebayo said Nigeria’s creative economy currently contributes about 1.2 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, compared with nearly three per cent in South Africa, which he said had developed stronger structures around its creative industries.
“The difference is that they count it, they structure it, they finance it. We have the louder voice; they built the microphone, provided better infrastructure, supported with better policies,” he said.
He also pointed to South Korea’s deliberate investment in cultural exports and the resulting global success of Korean music, movies and television as evidence that creative influence could be cultivated through purposeful policy and investment.
Adebayo identified skills, capital and structure as critical gaps holding back Nigeria’s creative economy, citing shortages in specialist areas such as cinematography, product management and animation, alongside the high cost of professional equipment and expertise.
“The average Nollywood film has historically been made on a budget a fraction of what a single day costs a serious studio abroad. A great script in this country does not die because it is bad; it dies because it is broke,” he said.
He said stronger intellectual property protection and clearer pathways for converting creative ideas into bankable businesses were equally imperative.
iDICE Unveils Financing Opportunities
Adebayo disclosed that the iDICE programme had established a $45 million debt fund and a $65 million Islamic finance facility, alongside equity financing options designed to attract additional private and international capital into Nigeria’s technology and creative sectors.
He urged financial institutions to begin treating creative ventures as investable businesses rather than informal enterprises.
“To the financiers in the room and every institution, we should stop treating film like a personal loan and start treating it like the asset class that it has become everywhere else on earth,” he said.
Corporate Nigeria, he added, must also move beyond merely sponsoring creative events and begin investing directly in the industry.
“Do not just sponsor the summit; fund the sector,” Adebayo said.
He added that the government had a critical responsibility to strengthen intellectual property protection and develop policies capable of responding rapidly to the evolving needs of creative businesses.
Adebayo equally urged Nigerian creatives to keep telling the country’s stories, arguing that their work could profoundly shape how Nigeria is perceived both at home and abroad.
“The next chapter of Nigeria will not be written by the government alone, nor will it be written by the private sector alone. It will be co-written by the creator, the financier, the policymaker, the entrepreneur, by everyone in this room, deciding that our story is too valuable to leave untold and too powerful to leave unfunded,” he said.
Industry Heavyweights Debate the Future
The summit featured two panel discussions involving prominent figures across Nigeria’s creative ecosystem.
The first, “Building Tomorrow’s Creative Economy Today,” featured Chief Executive Officer of X3M Ideas, Steve Babaeko; Technical Adviser at the Lagos State Ministry of Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Dr Olamide Okulaja; co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Narrative Landscape Press, Anwuli Ojogwu; and Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of the Rivers State Tourism Development Agency, Yibo Koko.
The session was moderated by former Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Steve Ayorinde.
The second panel, “What Creatives Need for Nigeria,” featured veteran actress and President of Women in Film and TV Nigeria, Joke Silva; founder of Buckwyld Media Network, Efe Omorogbe; content creator Oluwabukunmi Adeaga-Ilori, popularly known as Kiekie; and technology and finance content creator Fisayo Fosudo.
The session was moderated by Funke Treasure.
Hosted by comedian Gbenga Adeyinka, the summit also featured a special musical performance by saxophonist Temilayo Abodunrin, while plaques were presented to resource persons.
The event was supported by FirstBank, NLNG, Zenith Bank, Fidelity Bank, The Africa Soft Power Group, Lagos State Internal Revenue Service and Polaris Bank.
The inaugural QEDNG Creative Powerhouse Summit was held on August 12, 2025, under the theme, “Financing as Catalyst for a Thriving Creative Economy.”
0Related posts:
Surviving in a Challenging Environment – Tobi Abiola
QEDNG Unveils Powerhouse Summit to Boost Nigeria’s Creative Economy
BOI’s iDICE National Coordinator Ife Adebayo to Deliver Keynote at QEDNG Creative Powerhouse Summit
Security, Society, and the Student: The Role of Educated Youths in Building a Stable Nation
Providus Bank, Polaris Bank join sponsors of QEDNG Creative Powerhouse Summit
Gbenga Adeyinka to Host QEDNG Summit as Kiekie Joins Speakers