With few exportable resources, Cape Verde is enabling its cultural assets to be a significant contributor to the country’s economy, according to Carlos Lopes, executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa headquartered in Addis Ababa.

Said to have the greatest number of musicians per square kilometer, Cape Verde is a good example of how a country can leverage such resources to place the creative economy at the cornerstone of its development strategy, Lopes writes in AllAfrica.

From AllAfrica.

While there is clearly no shortage of talent in the continent, Africa has been relatively poor in profiting from it.

In 2010, Africa’s contribution to the world export of cultural goods was reported as marginal, amounting to less than 1 percent. A lot has happened since then, but the figure speaks to the need to transform these opportunities.

Africa’s presence in global markets for creative goods and services has been stagnated by its limited supply capacity, lack of intellectual property knowledge, obsolete policies and regulations, as well as under investment in the industry, particularly infrastructure.

For example, in the U.S. there are 40,000 movie theaters; India has 20,000; China 13,000; but the whole of Africa has less than 1,000 which accounts for 1 cinema per million people. Such gaps signify an untapped potential for growth. Creativity is
the new money and it is time for Africa to reap its benefits.

What is in Africa’s favor? It is already recognized for its music, film, performing arts and craft; and there is demand for its creative talent. There is a need to understand how these value chains work, how art is commercialized and how the incentives are applied.

Lessons can be learnt from the world’s leading creative
economies, such as the U.S.A., where the creative sector is estimated to account for at least 6 per cent of GDP; the result of an aggressive and deliberate strategy. The time is ripe for Africa now for a number of reasons.

With 7 to 10 million youth looking for jobs every day, all opportunities should be seized. Africa’s creative economy can trigger a value chain between artists, entrepreneurs, distributors and support services across multiple sectors to provide modern jobs.

Cape Verde, said to have the greatest number of musicians per square kilometer, is a good example of how a country can leverage such resources to place the creative economy at
the cornerstone of its development strategy.

With few exportable resources, Cape Verde is enabling its
cultural assets to be a significant contributor to the country’s economy.

Efforts have made it easier for artists and producers of creative goods to produce locally as well as for export. For instance, a micro-credit facility referred to as a culture bank was created in 2012 to facilitate access to seed money for small entrepreneurs and creators across the islands.

To further encourage the creative drive, networks of
crafts, art, museums, venues and festivals have been set up across the islands so that everyday culture and arts are stimulating the economy.

The recent Atlantic Music Expo that took place earlier this year in the capital Praia, was also a significant step that brought together a wide range of music industry professionals from across the world, connecting then to local musicians, entrepreneurs and distributors, to trigger the value chain.

Read more at AllAfrica.