Unlocking Nigeria’s youth creative economy through stronger IP laws

Nigeria is brimming with young creative talents such as musicians, filmmakers, designers, writers, and digital innovators shaping culture at home and commanding global attention.

Yet for many of these creators, turning originality into sustainable income remains an uphill climb. Weak enforcement, piracy, and limited awareness of intellectual property rights continue to erode the value of their work.

Strengthening intellectual property laws, and, crucially, making them effective in practice, offers a clear path to changing that reality.

Hassan Bala, managing director at Learn Africa Plc, emphasised that piracy is thriving in Nigeria due to a lack of strong institutions to fight and scotch the menace.

“If the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) had the strength it requires to fight piracy, just like the NDLEA or NAFDAC in the days of Dora Akunyili, it certainly would not have thrived,” he said.

Experts argue that creativity is the engine that drives economic progress in a country; however, with knowledge and creativity comes the responsibility to protect intellectual property.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s creative sector, encompassing media, entertainment, beauty, lifestyle, visual arts, tourism, and hospitality, is projected to reach a staggering $15 billion by 2025.

Nigeria’s creative economy is vast and diverse as it houses creatives from different ethnic groups and can be described as ‘the interface between creativity, culture, economics and technology.’

In today’s digital age, where information is easily accessible and widely shared, issues of copyright, plagiarism, and ethical use of information have become more critical than ever.

Emeke Iwerebon, chairman at Learn Africa Plc, said, “The widespread unauthorised distribution and counterfeit copies negatively impact the viability and profitability of legitimate publishers.

“Piracy stifles creativity as there can be no incentive to renew or innovate. Besides, it distorts pricing as pirates do not invest in origination, pay taxes, or royalties, and are not legitimate employers of labour.

And since this criminal enterprise is of an international dimension, and requires security agencies, the Department of Security Services (DSS) or other related agencies should be drafted in to help investigate the international conspirators.”

Experts argue that by protecting ownership and rewarding innovation, a more robust intellectual property framework can help transform creativity from passion into economic power.

“If we have people in the creative industry gaining as much as they ought to, most of them will not go for white-collar jobs. Most people will prefer to be creative writers.

Hence, anything impeding the citizens from getting the maximum returns on their investment should be viewed as sabotage and economic crime,” they emphasised.

Protecting intellectual property can help attract investment, formalise informal sectors, and give young Nigerians the confidence to create, distribute, and monetise their work at scale.