LAGOS, Nigeria — January 2026
After the 9th Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) in Lagos (January 7–11), industry leaders across the continent are amplifying urgent calls for stronger intellectual property (IP) enforcement and the formal integration of creative exports into the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) framework. The post-AFRIMA conversations made clear that celebration alone won’t secure long-term value for creators as the sector scales toward a projected $200 billion opportunity.
AFRIMA: more than awards — a platform for policy
Beyond recognising artistic achievement, AFRIMA (https://afrima.org/) has again become a strategic forum for addressing structural issues in Africa’s creative economy. Policymakers, music executives, legal experts and creative entrepreneurs used the festival’s industry sessions to spotlight persistent problems—widespread piracy, weak royalty collection, and uneven IP enforcement—that are eroding creators’ share of streaming and licensing revenues.
The IP enforcement gap must close
A central takeaway from the discussions was the need to modernise copyright regimes and strengthen enforcement across borders. Stakeholders urged reforms that would ensure creators actually capture value from their work rather than seeing earnings siphoned off by intermediaries and piracy. Key priorities include:
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Digitised, accessible IP registries
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Stronger, better-funded collective management organisations (CMOs)
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Regional harmonisation of copyright laws and enforcement procedures
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Capacity-building for creators on rights management and monetisation
AfCFTA: an overlooked engine for creative exports
Industry voices also pointed to an untapped opportunity in AfCFTA (https://au.int/en/ti/cfta). While AfCFTA promises tariff-free trade across 54 countries, creative goods and services—music, film, fashion, and digital content—remain poorly integrated into operational trade rules. Experts want AfCFTA to:
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Define clear classifications for creative sector goods and services
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Remove regulatory barriers for touring, distribution and digital exportation
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Create incentives for cross-border co-productions and content distribution
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Recognise creative industries as strategic export sectors deserving targeted support
Embedding creatives in AfCFTA would open new markets, boost foreign exchange earnings, and formalise value chains across the continent.
Turning cultural capital into economic power
The consensus emerging from AFRIMA is that Africa must match its cultural influence with robust systems—legal, financial and educational—that convert cultural capital into retained economic value. To capture the projected $200 billion creative market, stakeholders say IP reform, trade policy inclusion, financing mechanisms and skills development must advance in parallel.
What creatives should do now
For artists, producers, designers and digital creators, the message is practical and urgent:
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Own your rights and register your works
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Learn the terms in your contracts before you sign
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Plan for regional and international markets, not just local sales
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Position your work and teams for export-readiness
As AFRIMA 2026 recedes, its lasting legacy may well be this renewed momentum: industry-wide pressure to build the legal and trade architecture that lets African creators protect, monetise, and scale their work across the continent and beyond.
