EDC engages stakeholders on creative sector growth, FriendnPal wins 2024 CBCN

The Director, Enterprise Development Centre of Pan-Atlantic University, Dr. Nneka Okekearu has stated that the country’s creative industry is the new goldmine because it has the capacity and potential to solve Nigeria’s perennial unemployment crisis if well positioned.

She stated this during the Creative Business Summit at the 2024 Global Entrepreneurship Week themed; “The Future Creative Work Adapting to New Norms” in Lagos.

The creative business summit was hosted by EDC in partnership with Mastercard Foundation. Okekearu, who highlighted the importance of creative business to the economy and its contributions to the gross domestic product (GDP), said that creative business is a very huge sector if properly harnessed.
According to her, “The creative industry is a huge sector and it is a new gold, and the creative business, if you put it into segments, take fashion as an example and look at the value chain. You will see that there is so much that can be done.”

Speaking on the challenges confronting the sector, Okekearu stated that “They need to be very creative in designing music or clothes or script writing. It is good to have that talent but the main challenge they face is the business side of the creative.”

She, therefore, urged stakeholders to embrace what enterprise development centre is doing to help startups in the industry. “They should check out the enterprise development centre online for all the events, activities and programmes that we do.”

Meanwhile, during the creative business summit 2024, FriendnPal was announced the winner of the Creative Business Cup Nigeria in 2024, winning a N1 million seed grant. Creative Business Cup Nigeria 2024 is for young entrepreneurs.

According to Dr. Olawale Anifowose, Managing Director, GEN Nigeria, “Creative Business Cup is much more than just a competition – it is a global year-round initiative that empowers entrepreneurs in the creative industries, helping them grow their business ideas, connecting them to investors and the global markets, and strengthening their innovative capabilities to the benefit of industry and society.”