Vice President Kashim Shettima has challenged African countries to stop giving away their rich cultural heritage and creative talents without adequate economic returns, insisting that the continent must convert its growing global cultural influence into wealth, jobs and sustainable industries.
Shettima said Africa must move beyond celebrating the international success of its music, films, fashion and literature to building commercially viable enterprises that can attract investment and compete in global markets.
Speaking on Thursday at the opening of CANEX Weekend 2026 at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts, National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, the Vice President declared that African creativity must become a major driver of international trade.
Representing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the continental gathering, he said the Federal Government was strengthening intellectual property protection, expanding access to finance and positioning Nigeria to maximise opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
In a statement issued by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, Shettima said, ‘In 1977, we came to celebrate our culture. In 2026, we come to capitalise on it: to turn the applause of the world into contracts, its admiration into markets, and the talent of our young people into enduring wealth’, he declared.
Drawing a parallel between the historic FESTAC ’77 and the current gathering, Shettima said Nigeria’s cultural influence had expanded considerably through the achievements of its filmmakers, musicians, writers, designers and other creative entrepreneurs.
He stressed, however, that international recognition must translate into tangible economic benefits for African countries and their citizens.
‘Our duty as a government is to match this with policy. Through the leadership of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the Ministry of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy and in collaboration with other ministries, we are strengthening the protection of intellectual property, widening access to finance for creative enterprises, and positioning Nigeria to lead creative trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area.
‘Creativity is now a trade sector, and we intend to treat it as one’, he said.
The Vice President welcomed the African Export-Import Bank’s (Afreximbank) commitment of $2 billion to Africa’s creative industries through 2027, describing the investment as a strategic recognition of the sector’s economic potential.
He recalled that the 2024 CANEX gathering in Algiers attracted nearly 4,000 participants from 81 countries and facilitated business deals exceeding $540 million.
‘That is not sentiment. That is strategy’, he remarked.
Shettima urged participants to use the Lagos gathering to secure concrete business opportunities rather than merely celebrate Africa’s cultural achievements.
‘To our creatives: do not leave Lagos with memories alone. Leave with a signed term sheet, a distribution deal, a buyer’s handshake. The world is ready to pay for what you make’, he said.
He also challenged international investors and financial institutions to identify and support promising African creative businesses.
‘To our investors and financiers: the next great global creative companies will come from Africa. Back them early, and back them here’, he added.
The Vice President urged African governments to remove regulatory and commercial barriers restricting the movement of creative products across national borders.
He noted that CANEX Weekend 2026 would also provide a platform for building commercial partnerships ahead of the fifth Intra-African Trade Fair, scheduled for Lagos in 2027.
In his remarks, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu described the hosting of CANEX Weekend as recognition of the state’s position as a leading centre of Africa’s creative economy.
He said the return of a major continental cultural gathering to the National Theatre, nearly five decades after FESTAC ’77, reinforced Lagos’ historic contribution to African cultural development.
Sanwo-Olu welcomed Afreximbank’s $2 billion commitment and pledged continued support for creative enterprises through improved financing, stronger intellectual property protection and enabling policies.
Also speaking, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, disclosed that the Federal Government was working to unlock over $600 million in financing for Nigeria’s digital and creative enterprises.
She said the Tinubu administration was determined to ensure Nigerian creatives retained greater economic value from their intellectual property and international commercial successes.
Oduwole cited Davido’s performances at London’s O2 Arena, Burna Boy’s Grammy Award and Universal Music Group’s investment in Mavin Records as evidence of the global commercial appeal of Nigerian creativity.
She said Nigeria’s designation as co-champion of the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade, alongside the approval of the country’s first National Intellectual Property Policy, would strengthen the protection and commercialisation of creative products.
The President and Chairman of Afreximbank’s Board of Directors, Dr George Elombi, reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to financing Africa’s creative industries and expanding their access to international markets.
Elombi described Nigeria as one of the continent’s foremost creative hubs, noting that CANEX Weekend offered young entrepreneurs opportunities to attract investment, build partnerships and expand their businesses.