By Benson Daniel
The Federal Government has set a target for Nigeria’s creative sector to contribute roughly 2.3 per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product and generate two million additional jobs by 2030 as part of efforts to diversify the economy and create new sources of growth.
The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, disclosed the target while discussing plans to strengthen the institutional and financial framework for the country’s creative industries.
Musawa said the government was deliberately repositioning the creative, cultural and tourism sectors as important drivers of economic growth rather than treating them as secondary components of the economy.
She said the ministry had recently inaugurated four committees to develop policies and strategies, programmes and implementation frameworks, stakeholder engagement mechanisms, as well as monitoring and evaluation structures required to achieve the sector’s long term objectives.
The committees are expected to help establish the institutional and financial architecture needed to support businesses and professionals operating across Nigeria’s creative industries.
The minister also disclosed that work was nearing completion on a National Tourism Policy, which is expected to provide a long term framework for developing the tourism industry and strengthening its contribution to the wider economy.
The renewed focus on the creative economy comes as the Federal Government seeks to reduce the country’s dependence on traditional sources of revenue and expand sectors capable of generating employment, investment and foreign exchange.
Nigeria’s creative industries encompass areas such as film, music, fashion, advertising, arts, entertainment, cultural heritage and other forms of intellectual and cultural production. The sector has continued to attract significant interest from young Nigerians and private investors.
The government believes that stronger policy support, improved financing and better institutional coordination could unlock greater economic value from the sector.
The Director General of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Professor Ayo Omotayo, said the institute had selected the Orange Economy as the focus of its current study because of its potential to support Nigeria’s broader economic ambitions.
The Orange Economy incorporates creative, cultural and cultural heritage activities and is being examined as part of efforts to identify sectors that can contribute to Nigeria’s long term development objectives.
Omotayo said the creative sector had the potential to contribute significantly to the country’s ambition of building a much larger economy by 2030, while also creating employment opportunities for a growing population.
The National Institute is also planning a National Summit and Exhibition on the Orange Economy, with the aim of bringing together policymakers, investors, creative professionals and other stakeholders to examine the sector’s challenges and opportunities.
Former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, also backed the initiative, describing the creative industry as an important area for future economic development and job creation.
For the sector to meet the government’s targets, stakeholders say greater investment in infrastructure, skills development, access to finance, intellectual property protection and market expansion will be essential.
The development of stronger creative industries could also increase Nigeria’s participation in international cultural and entertainment markets while providing more opportunities for young people to turn creative skills into sustainable businesses.
With the government now developing new policies and institutional structures, the effectiveness of implementation will determine whether the creative economy can deliver the projected contribution to GDP and millions of new jobs by 2030.
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