The federal government has said it is targeting increased exchange, investment and job creation throughout the imaginative economy as Nigeria prepares to host the 2026 Inventive Africa Nexus (CANEX) Weekend in Lagos.
The minister of Market, Manage and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, disclosed this at a press briefing at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on preparations for the event scheduled for November 5 to 8.
Oduwole said CANEX was further than a celebration of African creativity, describing it as a platform for handle, investment, enterprise and handle availability.
She said the federal government’s priority was to secure that Nigeria’s inventive talent translated into sustainable businesses, intellectual possession, exports and jobs.
According to her, Nigeria has key strengths in method, literature, visual arts, gastronomy, sports, music, film and technology, and the government wants to associate these sectors to assist, investors, distribution networks, technology and multinational markets.
“CANEX must restate connections into transactions,” she said.
Oduwole said the event would bring together creators, businesses, investors, financiers, policymakers, distributors and promote-connection partners, creating opportunities for partnerships, financing and expansion of Nigerian inventive enterprises beyond the country.
She said extra than 10,000 participants were expected at CANEX 2026 and expressed confidence that Nigeria would break former CANEX records.
The minister said all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory would have pavilion spaces at the event to showcase their modern industries and cultural offerings.
She said the hosting of CANEX was a overall-of-government attempt involving the Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture, Tourism and the Imaginative Economy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Support, Customs, Immigration, the Key Bank of Nigeria, the Nationwide Theatre and the Lagos Status Government.
Oduwole said Lagos would furthermore host the Intra-African Exchange Just in 2027, which she said was expected to occupy extra than 100,000 participants.
She explained that the two events formed component of Nigeria’s broader ambition to position the country as a primary destination for African swap, investment and enterprise.
The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Tunji Disu, said the Nigeria Police Force was being involved before enduring in the preparations to produce sure sufficient security for the multinational participants expected in Lagos.
Disu said security was important to the success of the event, noting that visitors would be coming to Nigeria from varied parts of the world.
He said the Commissioner of Police and the AIG in value of Zone 2 had been tasked together with ensuring abundant security arrangements.
“We have time to approach,” the IGP said, adding that participants would experience conventional policing and officers who were organized to welcome visitors to Nigeria.
Disu additionally said he had asked the minister to supply a pavilion for the police to showcase its security operations during the event.
The Minister of Status for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye said the ministry was functioning including the Ministry of Field, Exchange and Investment and other government agencies to mobilise multinational participation.
He said material concerning CANEX would be disseminated to diplomatic missions in Nigeria and Nigerian missions abroad to spark participation from across Africa and other parts of the world.
He added that the ministry was operating using immigration authorities to facilitate seamless visa processing for participants.
According to him, the ministry would moreover coordinate protocol and ushering arrangements to secure fluid movement of participants upon arrival and at the venue.
The Minister of Status described CANEX as an possibility to deploy Nigeria’s innovative resources as an component of the country’s soft power and diplomacy.
He said the government wanted to harness Nigeria’s innovative talents, which had repeatedly operated individually, to guide the country’s foreign-policy objectives and domestic interests.
CANEX Weekend 2026 will be held in Lagos from November 5 to 8, together with activities spanning music, film, style, gastronomy, literature, visual arts, sports, and technology, alongside investment, financing, and advertise-admission engagements.
Source: Federal Govt Targets Trade, Investment, Jobs Through Creative Economy
