Afreximbank Targets $1bn Pan-African Film Fund To Boost Africa’s Creative Industry

The Executive Vice President, Intra-African Trade and Export Development at Afreximbank, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, who disclosed this while delivering the opening statement at the 2026 Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) Summit in Lagos, pointed out that the proposed fund being developed through the bank’s impact investment subsidiary, the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), in partnership with One Street Studios, was expected to finance African content, strengthen distribution networks, develop enabling technologies and build infrastructure for the continent’s film industry.

This comes the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Afreximbank, Dr George Elombi, called for stronger African ownership and value capture across the creative-industry supply chain, warning that increased production financing alone will not deliver optimal economic benefits to the continent. Elombi said Africa must move beyond financing music and movie productions to building a comprehensive creative ecosystem that enables the continent to retain more value from its creative output.

Citing estimates from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), he said Africa’s creative economy was valued at approximately $60 billion, representing about two per cent of the global creative industry.

Equally, former President of Afreximbank, Prof. Benedict Oramah, stressed that unlocking finance for the creative industry would require a fundamental restructuring of how financial institutions assess and support creative businesses. He argued that the challenge was not necessarily a shortage of capital but the inability of smaller creative entrepreneurs to access available funding because they often lacked the business structures and market evidence required by lenders.

Speaking further, Awani said the bank’s investment strategy was designed to address structural challenges confronting Africa’s creative industries, particularly inadequate financing, weak distribution networks, fragmented markets and poor intellectual property protection.

She stressed that Africa’s challenge was no longer a shortage of creative talent but the absence of the financial and institutional infrastructure required to convert that talent into sustainable businesses and economic prosperity.

According to her, much of the value generated by African music, films, fashion, literature, gastronomy and other creative products continue to be financed, distributed, owned and monetised outside the continent.

“The creative economy is no longer peripheral. It is part of Africa’s development story. It is a trade sector, an investment opportunity, and a strategic asset capable of generating jobs, foreign exchange and global influence at scale,” she said.

Awani disclosed that Afreximbank, through its subsidiary, Creative Africa Investments, had approved six investments in new projects spanning film, television, music and digital content.

On skills development, she disclosed that Afreximbank had trained more than 7,000 aspiring jewellers and craftspeople across Africa and the diaspora through its partnership with Egyptian jeweller, Azza Fahmy, and Trace Academia.

In gastronomy and culinary arts, Awani said the bank had connected more than 30 African and Caribbean food brands to buyers, facilitating approximately $20 million in trade deals and opening new markets across Africa, the United States, Europe and the Middle East.

She also disclosed that the CANEX Book Factory had brought together emerging writers from 16 African and Caribbean countries, culminating in the publication of an anthology titled Instances of Exceptional Moments of Hunger, featuring 19 writers.

Similarly, the CANEX Music Factory had brought together more than 150 musicians in collaborative recording sessions, producing 32 original songs released on global streaming platforms.

Beyond music production, she said Afreximbank was working with the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry to establish regional music charts in four African countries, including Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Senegal, to provide credible, data-driven evidence of artists’ performance and strengthen their ability to attract investment and commercial partnerships.

Awani further disclosed that the bank’s CANEX Skills Development Programme, delivered through CANEX.Africa and the Afreximbank Academy, had attracted 12,000 users, offering online training in music, fashion, film and gastronomy.

In his opening remarks, Elombi said Africa must move beyond financing music and movie productions to building a comprehensive creative ecosystem that enables the continent to retain more value from its creative output.

“We can put these financing schemes into music and movie productions. Yet the value we derive will still be low. We must therefore focus on building the creative ecosystem,” he said.

The Afreximbank president identified distribution, branding, marketing platforms and intellectual property ownership as critical areas requiring greater investment and African participation.