Creative Economy Contributes 2.3% to Nigeria’s GDP, Minister Musawa Says
Creative Economy Contributes 2.3% to Nigeria’s GDP, Minister Musawa Says
Creative Economy Contributes 2.3% to Nigeria’s GDP, Minister Musawa Says
The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa, has disclosed that Nigeria’s creative sector currently contributes approximately 2.3 per cent to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as the Federal Government works to significantly expand the sector’s contribution to the economy.
Musawa stated this on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, when the Director-General of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Professor Ayo Omotayo, and former Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, visited her in Abuja.
The delegation was at the Ministry to brief the Minister on plans to organise a National Summit and Exhibition on the Orange Economy and seek the Ministry’s partnership, given its mandate as the lead government institution responsible for creative economy and tourism policy.
According to Musawa, the Federal Government has set ambitious targets for the creative economy under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, including achieving a ₦100 billion GDP contribution and creating two million jobs by 2030.
She said the Ministry recently inaugurated four drafting committees focused on policy and strategy; programmes and implementation; stakeholder engagement; and monitoring and evaluation to establish the institutional and financial architecture required to unlock the full potential of Nigeria’s creative industries.
“We are also concluding work on the National Tourism Policy that will anchor this vision for years to come,” she said.
Government Targets Creative Sector Expansion
The Minister said the administration was deliberately repositioning Nigeria’s creative, cultural and tourism sectors as major engines of national economic growth rather than treating them as secondary components of the economy.
She described the Orange Economy, which encompasses creative, cultural and cultural-heritage industries, as an important component of Nigeria’s economic diversification strategy.
Musawa welcomed NIPSS’s decision to focus its Senior Executive Course (SEC) 48, 2026 study on the Orange Economy, noting that the subject aligns closely with the Ministry’s mandate and the Federal Government’s economic diversification agenda.
She described NIPSS as a key national institution for developing strategic thinking and preparing current and future leaders to address Nigeria’s development challenges.
The Minister assured the delegation that her Ministry was ready to collaborate with NIPSS as a technical partner and stakeholder convener for the proposed summit and exhibition.
NIPSS Seeks Stronger Institutional Partnership
Earlier, Professor Ayo Omotayo said the visit formed part of NIPSS’s engagement with relevant institutions ahead of the proposed National Summit and Exhibition.
He said the Institute was committed to supporting the Federal Government’s economic transformation agenda and was seeking the Ministry’s partnership to develop an institutional framework backed by sustainable strategic policies for the Orange Economy.
According to him, the summit would provide an opportunity to bring together government institutions, private-sector players, creative professionals and other stakeholders to examine the opportunities and challenges within the sector.
Lai Mohammed: Creative Industry Holds Future of Economy
Former Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, also expressed support for the initiative, saying the proposed Orange Economy Summit could help unlock employment opportunities and create sustainable jobs across Nigeria’s creative industries.
He stressed that the creative industry represents an important part of the future of Nigeria’s economy and should receive greater attention and investment.
The engagement comes as NIPSS conducts Senior Executive Course 48, 2026, with the broader study theme: “Organising Economic and Sustainable Development in Nigeria: Issues, Challenges and Opportunities.”
The proposed Orange Economy Summit and Exhibition is expected to further deepen national conversations around Nigeria’s creative and cultural industries and explore practical strategies for transforming the sector into a stronger contributor to economic growth, employment and sustainable development.
Creative Economy Contributes 2.3% to Nigeria’s GDP, Minister Musawa Says
