UK, Nigeria strengthen creative partnerships to support growth, international collaboration  

Lagos, 9 November 2026

The UK and Nigeria have concluded a series of creative-sector engagements in Lagos, connecting creative businesses, practitioners, policymakers and cultural institutions with expertise, networks and potential routes to new audiences and markets.

The UK Creative Sector Delegation brought together 17 professionals from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland with Nigeria counterparts, working across film, television, music, fashion, design, literature, theatre, visual arts and other creative sectors.

Through targeted meetings, roundtables and activities around the Africa International Film Festival, the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) Weekend, Lagos Fringe and Art X Lagos, participants exchanged knowledge, developed professional relationships and explored areas for future collaboration.

Discussions focused on the practical conditions creative practitioners and businesses need to grow, including skills development, intellectual property protection and rights management, access to appropriate finance, production capability, commissioning, distribution and access to local and international audiences.

The visit also supported the continuing work of the UK-Nigeria Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership Creative Industries Technical Working Group. Launched in March 2025, the Working Group brings government and industry representatives together to identify commercial opportunities, address regulatory and non-tariff barriers and encourage collaboration across film and television, music, design and fashion, architecture, advertising, and gaming.

British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, Jonny Baxter, said:

“Nigeria’s creative industries combine exceptional talent, entrepreneurial energy and global influence. The UK is committed to being a practical, long-term partner, connecting Nigerian creative businesses and institutions with expertise, networks, finance and international markets.

“These engagements have been about creating the conditions for meaningful collaboration. Their success will be measured by what happens next: the relationships that continue, the barriers that are addressed and the opportunities that develop into lasting benefits for people and businesses in both our countries.”

The programme forms part of the longer journey towards the UK-Nigeria Season of Culture in 2028. The Season will be strengthened by the relationships, insights and creative ideas developed in advance, including opportunities for co-creation, audience development, professional exchange, and commercially relevant collaboration.

Country Director of the British Council in Nigeria, Donna McGowan, said:

“Creativity thrives when talented people have the opportunity to exchange ideas, develop their skills and build trusted relationships across borders. This delegation has connected creative practitioners and institutions from Nigeria and the United Kingdom, creating space for them to learn from one another and explore areas of shared interest.

“For the British Council, the priority is to ensure that cultural exchange creates lasting value. The relationships and insights developed through this programme can support future collaboration, widen access to international networks and help shape an inclusive and ambitious UK-Nigeria Season of Culture in 2028.”

Following the engagements, the UK and Nigerian partners will build on the relationships and insights developed through the programme, taking forward priority introductions, policy discussions, and partnership opportunities with potential for further development.

The visit reflects the wider commitment of the UK and Nigeria to support creativity as a driver of cultural connection, innovation, employment, exports, and shared prosperity.

Director-General, National Council for Arts and Culture, NCAC, Obi Asika said:

“Nigeria has an extraordinary depth of creative talent and intellectual property, much of which is still waiting to reach its full commercial potential. The opportunity before us is to use the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership and the Season of Culture to help bring more of that creativity to audiences and markets.

“For me, the real measure of success will be what lasts beyond 2028: the tours, collaborations, publishing deals, television projects, fashion partnerships, and new businesses that grow from the relationships we are building now. We want to be able to look back and point to tangible projects and say, ‘that came to life through the UK-Nigeria Season of Culture 2028.”

UK Delegate, Founder and CEO Black British Book Festival, Selina Brown said:

“Lagos has been absolutely incredible. The freedom, creativity, and energy I’ve experienced here are unlike anything I’ve encountered anywhere else in the world. In just one week, I’ve met emerging and established artists, writers, publishers and leaders across the creative industries, and I’m leaving deeply inspired. Nigeria’s creative sector feels full of possibility, and I already know I have to come back. There is so much the UK and Nigeria can learn from one another, and that exchange should be genuinely mutual, rooted in collaboration rather than the idea that knowledge only flows in one direction,”