Acting Executive Secretary of the Creative Arts Agency, Gideon Cyril Aryeequaye, has announced an eight-year development plan aimed at transforming Ghana’s creative industry into a structured, commercially viable and globally competitive sector.
The plan, which includes a GH¢20 million government seed fund, a new registration and licensing framework, a creative hub, talent development programmes and housing support for retired creatives, was unveiled at a high-level stakeholder engagement attended by the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Abla Dzifa Gomashie.
According to Mr Aryeequaye, the GH¢20 million seed funding, which is expected to be matched by additional critical funds, will help move the sector away from short-term interventions towards structured credit, grants and sustainable enterprise models.
He said the Agency was partnering with the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) and the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) to improve access to finance for creative industry practitioners.
Mr Aryeequaye also announced plans to roll out a new registration and licensing framework under the Creative Arts Agency Act, 2020 (Act 1048), alongside the establishment of a national stakeholder regulatory committee to create a credible database of practitioners.
He said the Agency was also engaging major international platforms to expand opportunities for the commercialisation and global distribution of Ghanaian creative works.
Beyond financing and regulatory reforms, the Agency is planning the development of the Greater Accra Creative Hub, a flagship facility expected to provide spaces for innovation, training, performances and enterprise incubation.
A welfare and counselling department has also been established to support practitioners, while a Creative Arts Housing Project is being developed to provide housing security for retired legends in the industry.
Mr Aryeequaye further disclosed that the Agency was developing nationwide talent discovery platforms in senior high schools to identify and nurture young creatives.
The interventions, he said, have been incorporated into an eight-year comprehensive development plan currently awaiting approval from the Ministry before it is shared with stakeholders.
The Creative Arts Agency is also preparing to embark on a 16-region stakeholder tour to educate practitioners and gather input on the proposed reforms.
Acknowledging years of unfulfilled promises within the sector, Mr Aryeequaye assured practitioners that government was committed to changing the narrative.
“I acknowledge that for many years our sector has carried a weight of unfulfilled promises, leading to understandable scepticism whenever new policies are unveiled,” he said.
“But I stand before you today to assure you that the tide has truly turned.”
He said the Agency was moving away from “piecemeal support and superficial gestures” towards deliberate and institutionalised interventions aimed at making creative work a dignified, profitable and secure career path.
Mr Aryeequaye urged industry players to actively participate in shaping the reforms, stressing that the government and the Agency could not build the sector in isolation.
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