Hannatu Musawa: We Have A Strategy For Creative Industry To Contribute $100bn To Nigeria’s Economy By 2030 

 Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa has said that Nigeria’s creative industry is going to contribute at least $100bn by 2030 to increase the GDP.

Musawa, who said this in an exclusive interview with ARISE NEWS on Thursday in Davos, stated that the ministry has created a strategic roadmap to achieve that goal.

“We have done a lot of research and we have used organization such as BCG, Mckenzie, to do a baseline because the date is not there, looking at other countries that have been able to thrive in this industry and we have been to project that the creative industry is going to contribute at least a $100bn by 2030 to increase the GDP. We have come up with a very robust plan, strategy and roadmap to achieve that.

“I am confident that with the creative economy, once we are able to cultivate it in the right way, we will really bring value back into Nigeria just from the artistry and creativity that we have in the country.”

The minister also stated that despite the fact that most creatives in Nigeria have succeeded without the government, the creative ministry is in talks with them to come up with the right policy framework to tap into their talents in ways that will benefit them.

“One of the main objectives of the ministry is to see how we can sort of bring this value back in the country but in a way that also supports our talents because what we know is that the talented people in Nigeria, the creatives have succeeded in spite of the government.  So, what we are saying to them now, we are reaching out to them to see how we can sort of tap into those talents in ways that will benefit not only them but also the country. That is to be able to come up with the right policy framework that will be able to do that.

“Like I say they have thrived in spite of government, so it may look like they don’t really need government because they have been able to succeed, but if you look at what has happened in south Korea, whereby the talent was already there and then the government came and had an alignment and collaboration and that is why we have the Korean way.

“We are talking to them about the ways we can support their crafts, their business and one of the main ways to do it is something like IP securitization, which is very important. Things like infrastructure, there is no infrastructure in Nigeria to support the creative industry. One thing that I say to the creatives in Nigeria is that Nigeria needs them to come to the table and have a conversation with the administration to see how we can work together and cultivate a better future as one.”

She further said that plans are in place to fortify the copyright laws in order to give the creatives the legal backings and support they deserve.

“We have to fortify the copyright laws in a way that would be able to cover all the areas. There are so many lacunas as far as copyright and intellectual properties go. Finding ways to bring the IP laws together is very foundational for me because we can really move from the bottom to anywhere without having proper IP securitization and so in the next few weeks, Nigeria would be able to see the ways that we are engaging the industry and the way we are putting a legal and regulatory framework together. So, we will give the people within the industry, a sort of legal backing and support that they deserve

“We have looked at the model that was used in Rwanda and the one that is used in Ghana and we are going to replicate it in a way that is fashioned in the Nigerian way. Now we are on that trajectory of producing or building this industry we are going to do something much bigger and something sustainable.

“I think everything in the creative industry is a low hanging fruit because the talent is there already and the people in the industry have been able to survive and thrive on their own, so it’s just for the government to key in and for the first time in Nigeria, the government has showed interest and sort of specifically given a ministry that would specifically cater to this industry and one thing we want to do is populate the ministry to people in the industry. We have spent the time doing research and now we are at the implementing stage and so in the next coming weeks, certainly in the next coming months, you will see implementation of different policies that are going to cater towards building a very strong foundation for the creative industry.”

Chioma Kalu

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