Lagos - Nigeria stands at the peak of a cultural renaissance. Afrobeats dominates global playlists, Nollywood’s stories traverse continents, and the nation’s creative talent is celebrated far beyond its borders. Yet this international acclaim conceals a pressing reality at home: a creative industry struggling against fragile infrastructure and systemic neglect. The National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) sits at the heart of this struggle, carrying a mandate to promote, preserve, and empower the nation’s cultural assets. The question now is stark—will the NCAC act as a guardian that enables growth, or a gatekeeper that restrains it? 

For decades, the NCAC’s role has leaned heavily towards preservation, most visibly through flagship events like the National Festival of Arts & Culture (NAFEST), which celebrate tradition and heritage. While such efforts have merit, the demands of today’s creative economy go far beyond curation. Preservation alone cannot sustain the pace or potential of Nigeria’s cultural surge. A recent NCAC partnership to showcase talent at FAME Week Africa suggests the beginnings of a directional shift—from archivist to architect—but such gestures must evolve into deliberate, far-reaching transformation.

The urgency is clear. Nollywood, the world’s second-largest film producer, serves more than 200 million people with barely 300 cinema screens—a bottleneck that throttles revenue and limits access. Billions of naira in pledged financing remain ensnared in layers of bureaucracy, perpetually out of reach for filmmakers, musicians, and cultural entrepreneurs who need it most. Nigeria’s creative output commands global attention, but domestically its enormous commercial potential withers under weak infrastructure and exploitative distribution chains.

From my vantage point as founder of the African Indigenous Language Film Festival (AILFF), this evolution is not optional—it is imperative. The NCAC must step out of the shadows of passive coordination and become a fierce advocate for Nigeria’s creative class. This requires a strategic offensive that is not cosmetic, but systemic.

First, the Council must transform from a bureaucratic administrator into a builder of opportunity. It must spearhead investment in both physical and financial infrastructure—multiplexes, digital distribution platforms, and production hubs—and aggressively lobby to release long-promised capital into the hands of creators. It should not only schedule the performances; it must construct the stages.

Second, Nigeria must advance from mere participation in global creative markets to playing a decisive role within them. At gatherings such as the Cannes Film Market or FAME Week Africa, the NCAC should lead purposeful creative diplomacy—brokering co-productions, securing equitable distribution deals, and ensuring that Nigerian producers occupy seats at the negotiation table, not positions in the hallway.

Third, the NCAC must drive the professionalization of Nigeria’s creative industries. Skills development, credible market data, strong guild systems, and transparent regulation are not optional—they form the foundation on which investor confidence is built. A fragmented but passionate ecosystem must be reshaped into a coherent and investable global industry.

Finally, the walls between Nollywood, Afrobeats, and Nigeria’s thriving fashion scene must be dismantled. These sectors are often treated as separate silos, yet together they have the power to form a unified “Naija” creative identity—a single strategic brand with multiplied export potential. The NCAC is uniquely positioned to orchestrate this fusion, creating a cultural force greater than the sum of its parts.

The most successful creative economies in the world did not grow solely on applause from abroad. They were grounded in robust local markets that guaranteed access to funding, modern venues, fair contracts, and systems designed to protect creators and retain value at home. For the NCAC, forging such a foundation is now the most critical mandate.

The global audience is listening. It is time to build the structures that ensure Nigeria not only hears its own stories but owns them. This is the moment of reckoning for the NCAC: to open the gates wide, or remain locked inside them. If our institutions can match the ambition and ferocity of our talent, Nigeria’s cultural dominance will no longer be an aspiration.

It will be an inevitability.

Writer,

Osezua Stephen-Imobhio, is the Founder/Director, African Indigenous Language Film Festival