Sunday Ehigiator
The United States government has pledged to roll out initiatives that will upskill creatives in music and television script writing in Nigeria, as part of its collaboration with the Ministry of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy,
The US Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, Lee Satterfield, disclosed this when she paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, in Abuja on Thursday.
Satterfield said the US government would use public diplomacy platforms, including people-to-people diplomacy, to revolutionise the growing opportunities in the music, art and literary fields.
“The Education and Cultural Affairs Bureau at the State Department plays a lead role primarily in building relationships and people-to-people diplomacy across a wide variety of sectors, education mostly, but also in cultural heritage.
“So in addition to the robust programmes we already do in the culture space, we have announced three new initiatives. One is for television production, to bring Nigerian TV production directors to the University of Southern California to work directly with American executive producers and directors, to help them create the shows, and to be mentored and use the American network to help bolster that sector.
“Secondly, with the recording academy, we announced a music programme where the Recording Academy will find American mentors who are members of the Recording Academy to bring Africans from the continent. I think five of the participants out of 20 will be Nigerians. And this is to bolster the music industry, not just musicians, but those who want to be in the business. It is exactly what you’re talking about, wanting to be in the business so we can pair them with Americans to talk about best practices and how to go into the field of music.
“We want to really create this ecosystem in the music space with these recording academy members. Secretary Blinken announced that the program will take place in October of this year. So we are really excited.”
Earlier, the Minister of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, cited Intellectual Property securitisation on copyright, lack of infrastructure, and the need to industrialise the sector as key grey areas that yearn for collaboration and investment in order to bring value into the country.
“Infrastructure is key. Part of our road map and strategy is to build the Abuja Creative City, which is going to be a one-stop shop for everything creative. In addition to the creative city, we are willing to work with different governments, organisations, and institutions to see how we can bring value both ways and really monetise the sector. So in a nutshell, we are looking at three key pillars- Cultural expansion, economic expansion, and job creation.
“The fourth is our robust initiative called Destination 2030 which we hope to use to reposition Nigeria on the global stage. We really want to get input from you and see how you can help us to invest in this industry, to help Nigeria and these generations through job creation. So, really, the door is open for business, for discussions, for collaborations, areas of alignment, and to continue the conversation on how we can also contribute our quota and our content to America.”
In attendance also was Peter Burba, First Secretary, US Embassy, Catherine Collins, Director of Film, TV and Digital Media Programs US Department of State, Ali Nuhu, Managing Director of the Nigerian Film Corporation and Obi Asika, Director General of the National Council for Arts and Culture.
