The Minister of Arts, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, has announced plans by the Federal Government to launch the DE30 platform, a data-driven initiative designed to drive growth, investments and opportunities in the creative sector.
Addressing the media in Lagos, Musawa said the platform would provide critical data on the creative industry, enabling players and investors to make informed decisions.
She explained that the DE30 platform is a key component of the government’s strategy to develop the creative economy, which is expected to contribute $100 billion to the country’s GDP by 2030.
“Our vision is to build an integrated, data-driven and investment-friendly ecosystem that really has the potential to unlock the great opportunities that abound in this industry.
“The DE30 platform will be able to map our current industry landscape and offer forward-looking insights,” she said.
The minister noted that key features of the DE30 include infrastructure audit, a tool to guide public-private partnerships and target investments and industry forecasts.
She said the government is actively working with the private sector to develop critical infrastructure and an enabling environment for the country’s creative industry to thrive.
She further explained that the PPP model would propel Nigeria’s creative and tourism industry to new heights by allowing it to unlock its immense potential and enhance economic growth, while ensuring sustainability, stressing that the government targets increasing GDP by $100 billion through the creative and tourism industry by 2030.
“Our goal is to ensure that Nigeria’s creative economy contributes significantly to national revenue. Based on global best practices and our own in-depth analysis, we are confident that this sector can add $100 billion to GDP by 2023,” she said.
Speaking on plans to ensure that adequate financing is provided for entrepreneurs in the sector, she noted that the government was working with the banks and other financial institutions to foster intellectual property (IP) monetisation in the country.
According to the minister, the government has studied the creative economies of countries like South Korea, Brazil, South Africa and Japan, identifying key policies and infrastructure investments that have driven their growth.
She noted that Nigeria has the talent and market size necessary to replicate similar success, adding that the country would be learning from the examples of the countries that have developed their creative and tourism industries.
The minister reaffirmed that the Creative City project, aimed at building a dedicated ecosystem for Nigeria’s creative talents, had commenced and is expected to be fully delivered within five years.
She also announced plans to establish a world-class museum in Abuja to address Nigeria’s long-standing challenge of inadequate storage and exhibition facilities for cultural artifacts.
She reaffirmed the government’s commitment to addressing the huge infrastructural gaps in the industry.
“One of the things that the platform needs is infrastructure. The infrastructure to support the growth of the industry is not enough.
“We realised that; we’re very committed and we are going to be very intentional in ensuring that we deliver the right infrastructure project,” she surmised.
