By Palma Ileye
Federal Government has said the 2026 Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) will create tangible investments, jobs and business partnerships beyond showcasing Nigeria’s creative talents.
The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Barr. Hannatu Musa Musawa, stated this at a joint Ministerial briefing on Nigeria’s preparations to host CANEX WKND, held at the ITF Skills House, Maitama, Abuja.
Musawa described CANEX as a strategic economic platform for interconnectivity and growth, saying it would serve as one of the largest creative economy platforms the ministry would jointly host with other stakeholders to project Nigeria’s creative capacity to the world.
She said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu created the Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy because of the need to provide deliberate government structure for a sector that had grown organically over the years.
According to her, Nigerian music, film, fashion and heritage had already established the country as a global creative powerhouse, stressing that government’s responsibility was to provide an enabling environment for the sector to translate its talent into economic prosperity.
“This is a shared responsibility. It is not the responsibility of one ministry. We are working together with the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and Afreximbank because we cannot deliver Mr President’s vision of economic diversification alone,” she said.
The Minister said the choice of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts, formerly the National Theatre, as the venue for CANEX WKND was symbolic, coming almost 50 years after the historic FESTAC ’77.
She said while FESTAC placed the Black community on the global map, CANEX would build on the legacy by reaffirming Nigeria’s position as Africa’s cultural and creative capital.
Musawa said the summit would showcase not only Nigeria’s creative content but also the infrastructure and reforms being put in place to enable the creative industry to scale.
She also commended the President of Afreximbank, Prof. Benedict Oramah, for his commitment and support for Africa’s creative economy.
Also speaking, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, said CANEX was a platform for trade, investment, enterprise and market access.
Oduwole said Nigeria was positioning its creative industries as part of its broader trade and export agenda, noting that as global trade increasingly shifted towards services, technology, content and intellectual property, the country must capture more economic value from its creative strength.
“That means connecting our creators and creative businesses to finance, investors, distribution, technology and international markets. CANEX must translate connections into transactions,” she said.
She added that the government expected the event to produce concrete outcomes, including partnerships, financing, commercialisation of intellectual property, access to new markets and the expansion of Nigerian creative enterprises beyond the country.
The Minister said delivering CANEX would require a whole-of-government approach involving the ministries of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy; Finance; Customs; Immigration; payments and financial services, as well as the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts.
Oduwole said CANEX was also part of Nigeria’s broader ambition to strengthen its role in African trade, ahead of the Intra-African Trade Fair scheduled to hold in Lagos in 2027.
She invited investors, businesses, creators and other stakeholders from Africa and beyond to participate in the event.
“So our invitation is clear: come to Lagos from November 5 to 8. Come ready to connect, to invest, to trade and to do business. Nigeria is ready to welcome Africa and the world,” she said.
CANEX WKND, an initiative supporting Africa’s creative industries, is scheduled to hold from November 5 to 8, 2026, at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts in Lagos.
