Afreximbank has brought together buyers, investors, financiers and policymakers from across Africa and the diaspora in Lagos to commercialise African creativity, with the $2 billion Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) programme seeking to turn the continent’s cultural talent into scalable businesses and sustainable commercial opportunities.
CANEX WKND 2026, which opened in Lagos on November 5th and runs until November 8th, is hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria and organised by Afreximbank through its Creative Africa Nexus programme, bringing together leading creatives, investors, policymakers, business leaders and cultural figures for four days of conversations, deal-making, performances, exhibitions and industry-focused sessions. The event’s business programme is built around the CANEX Deal Room and Creative Pitch Sessions, which connect creative entrepreneurs directly with financiers and investors considering opportunities across film and television, music, fashion, sport, publishing, gastronomy, visual arts and creative infrastructure.
A $2bn Commitment to Creative EnterpriseAfreximbank has committed $2 billion to support Africa’s creative industries between 2024 and 2027, with the funding designed to help African creators and businesses develop scalable enterprises, strengthen ownership of intellectual property and retain more of the economic value generated by the continent’s cultural and creative industries. The bank’s Executive Vice President for Intra-African Trade and Export Development, Mrs Kanayo Awani, said CANEX WKND provides an important platform for converting Africa’s creative talent into sustainable commercial opportunities, helping to strengthen the ecosystem required for African creative businesses to grow, access new markets and retain greater value from their work.
The Creative Economy Finance Summit, presented by Afreximbank in partnership with the Creative Economy Practice at Co-Creation Hub, will bring financial institutions and investors together to examine how creative-economy transactions can be structured, financed and de-risked, while CANEX Creations Inc. will lead discussions on unlocking investment in African intellectual property. The event’s gastronomy strand, including the CANEX Junior Chefs Competition, Africa Jollof Wars Competition and live demonstrations, will explore opportunities to commercialise African food, ingredients and culinary traditions in domestic and international markets.
CANEX Creations Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), the equity investment arm of Afreximbank, was established to commercialise Africa’s intellectual property assets, investing in and supporting creators and innovators across film, television, music, fashion, sports, technology and life sciences. The subsidiary’s work at the Toronto International Film Festival’s Global Africa Hub in October 2026 connected African intellectual property and talent with international capital, buyers and distribution networks, with several distribution conversations arising from projects showcased at TIFF: The Market now progressing.
The CANEX programme, launched in 2019, is designed to accelerate the development and monetisation of Africa’s vibrant creative and cultural industries, offering specialised financing, building technical capacity, enhancing market access, and supporting the commercialisation and protection of intellectual property. The bank’s broader strategy is to expand market access for Africa’s creative industries and increase the continent’s participation in global trade in creative goods and services, with the Lagos event aiming to convert networking into transactions by connecting African creative talent with investment, markets and commercial opportunities.
The challenge now is to ensure that the $2 billion commitment translates into accessible finance, viable businesses, stronger production capacity and sustainable employment across the continent, with investors needing credible projects, transparent financial information and confidence that contractual obligations will be honoured. The CANEX Finance Summit and Deal Room provide opportunities for eligible creative businesses to present commercially viable projects to financiers and investors, with the Lagos edition’s priority being to convert networking into transactions.
The event’s focus on finance, intellectual property, technology, skills development, investment and market access reflects a broader push to move beyond cultural celebration towards commercial outcomes, with the CANEX Deal Room and Creative Pitch Sessions designed to turn creative ideas and talent into viable businesses, partnerships and commercial opportunities. The four-day gathering represents a significant step in Afreximbank’s effort to reposition African and diasporic creativity as globally tradable, commercially viable assets.
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