CBN, banks to develop creative industries parks in National Theatre

Ebun Francis| The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday said it has concluded plans to boost the creative sector’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), through the development of creative industries park across three major cities.

Godwin Emeifele, CBN Governor, who made the disclosure in Lagos, at the Creative Nigeria Summit in Lagos, revealed that the National Theatre Iganmu would serve as the initial pilot for the project.

Emefiele further stated that the National Theatre would be given a face lift to reopen its touring potential offered during FESTAC 77 as the plan was to develop a 40-acre Creative Industry Park around the Theatre to create employment.

Similar parks, according to him, will be established in Kano, Port Harcourt or Enugu.

He said, “Our goal through the establishment of these
parks is to create an environment where startups and existing businesses can be
incubated and rewarded for their creativity.

“In each of these parks, efforts will be focused on discovering the most innovative young entrepreneurs across the music, movie, fashion and IT industries.

“Each park will be able to support skills acquisition for over 200,000 Nigerians.

“These individuals will be empowered with funds at single-digit interest rate, state-of-the-art tools, high-level training and networks, that will enable them to turn their ideas into a reality.

“This was the critical reason behind the CBN and the Bankers Committee decision, following our annual retreat in December 2018, to set up the Creative Industries and Financing Initiative (CIFI).

“The CBN and Bankers Committee believe that the little we can do is to create opportunities for these youths to access credit and bank loans to grow their
businesses.

“We cannot afford to let the talents of our youthful population go to waste, as it would portend great dangers for the progress of our nation,” he said.