To unlock the Africa’s untapped creative economies, a digital scale-up is important now more than ever.
Digital platforms in Africa must scale up in anticipation of the continent’s growing demand for creative content, says Africa Investment Forum Senior Director Chinelo Anohu.
Noting that the African Development Bank flagship agency is offering advisory services and investment aid to creative players.
Anohu while speaking at a virtual “fireside chat” with Afreximbank President Benedict Oramah and Dean Garfield, Netflix’s Vice President of Public Policy.
The Africa Soft Power Project arranged the gathering, titled The New Face of African Cooperation.
Omar Ben Yedder, Community Publisher & MD of IC Magazines, moderated.
However, the discussion was conducted against the backdrop of the recent coming into effect of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) (AfCFTA).
2021 is also the African Union’s year of arts, music and heritage.
Mostly, talks centered on the role of infrastructure and communication in developing Africa’s creative industries, including film, textiles and design.
In addition, Oramah said that Afreximbank set up a $500 million fund in January 2020 to boost Africa’s creative industries.
Basically, the continent faces a challenge to successfully monetize its creative output. Once it does so, he said, innovation will follow.
Garfield agreed with Anohu that the AfCFTA will help resolve a variety of the barriers to improving Africa’s creative output.
Although, this includes unequal intellectual property rights, fractured payment processes and insufficient human capital in creative industries.
“Data is one of the African Development Bank’s strong points.
They have a great analysis division.
And what we’re trying to do is mainstream the data culled from 55 countries and distill it in such a way that the investors can conveniently access the knowledge they need,” she said.
Netflix’s Garfield struck a positive note about his company’s future direction in Africa.
Garfield cited Africa’s young population and its rich storytelling heritage.
In addition, the Africa Finance Forum, championed by the African Development Bank, aims to facilitate the closing of the continent’s investment disparities.
Also, the Forum currently has a rising portfolio of 118 transactions estimated at $114 billion.
A digital scale-up is important now more than ever for Africa to fully maximize’s its content potential and to be become a digitally driven economy.
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