*The National Council for Arts and Culture and National Information Technology Development Agency announce a groundbreaking partnership to integrate Nigeria’s Cultural and Creative Industries into the country’s emerging digital and innovation ecosystems

Alexander Davis | 绿帽献妻

In a further boost to the Nigeria Digital Economy, the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) have announced a groundbreaking partnership to integrate the country’s cultural and creative industries (CCI) into the emerging digital and innovation ecosystems.

Mr. Obi Asika, Director-General of NCAC, and his team noted this development when they met with Malam Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, CCIE, Director-General of NITDA, and the agency’s senior leadership team, at NITDA Headquarters, in Abuja, FCT, to establish a collaborative framework.

Dr. Dennis Olofu, Head of Media at NCAC, and Mrs. Hadiza Umar, fnipr, Director of Corporate Communications and Media Relations at NITDA, in a joint statement, disclosed their聽 strategic alliance “seeks to harness the strengths of both agencies to drive growth, innovation, and digital transformation across Nigeria鈥檚 creative and cultural sectors.”

According to the Information Technology (IT) sector regulatory agency, the key focus areas of the partnership with the Council are:

ICE Capacity-Building Programme

NITDA explained the NCAC鈥檚 flagship programme, ICE (Innovate, Create, Empower) is designed to upskill participants in the cultural and creative industries.

It also noted that with NITDA鈥檚 support, ICE would expand to 1,000 locations nationwide, targeting the training of 2 million Nigerians by 2027.

NITDA will provide training facilities and digital labs to enhance the programme’s impact.

As regards Digital Platforms, the joint statement noted the NCAC, in collaboration with private sector partners, is developing digital platforms for cultural inventory, fan engagement, influencer marketing, subscription video-on-demand (SVOD), e-commerce, and capacity building.

NITDA also will provide support through local distribution networks and cloud services to strengthen these platforms.

On Infrastructure Development, it is stated that the National Council for Arts and Culture formally, requested NITDA’s assistance in equipping its headquarters and zonal offices with computers, tablets, consumables, digital labs, and podcast studios to achieve full digital transformation.

In respect of Collaboration on Major Events, the statement said the NCAC would mobilise its creative and cultural communities to participate in NITDA鈥檚 initiatives, including the highly anticipated GITEX Nigeria 2025.

BuyNigeria.ng Project: Both agencies also have agreed to pilot BuyNigeria.ng, an e-commerce platform designed to bring Nigerian markets online.

The statement indicated the initial phase would focus on markets in Kano, Lagos, Aba, and Abuja, fostering greater visibility and accessibility for traders and artisans while aligning with NCAC鈥檚 vision of enhancing productivity in the cultural and creative sectors.

Whereas on the constitution of a Joint Committee for the activation of the collaborative initiatives, Dr. Olofu and Mrs. Umar said disclosed that a joint committee comprising directors from both NCAC and NITDA has been established to drive the partnership forward and ensure seamless implementation of shared initiatives.

On Nigeria鈥檚 Got Talent, the two organisations said NCAC鈥檚 Nigeria鈥檚 Got Talent platform would integrate NITDA鈥檚 digital literacy programmes and gamified learning systems, creating opportunities for creatives to thrive in a digitally empowered environment.

The joint statement added: “This partnership marks a significant step toward integrating Nigeria鈥檚 cultural heritage with cutting-edge digital innovation, unlocking limitless potential for the nation鈥檚 creative and digital economies.”

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