Ghana Creative Economy Initiative Takes Flight To Help African Storytellers Go Global

African filmmakers, investors, and Hollywood television executives are gathering in Accra this July for the inaugural Ghana Creative Economy Initiative, a program designed to strengthen the continent’s creative industries through professional training, strategic investment, and international collaboration, Deadline reports.

The initiative, which runs from July 14 through July 24, was created by Ghanaian-British producer, film programmer, and creative industries strategist Dorina Amina Abubakar, program director of African Creative TV at the University of Southern California. The program combines an intensive Directing Lab, free public masterclasses, and a Creative Economy Summit to help African storytellers expand their global reach. According to organizers, the effort supports Ghana’s broader ambitions to grow its film, television, and digital media sectors as engines of economic development and international investment.

The Directing Lab, which concludes July 23, brings together eight producer-director teams from Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa whose credits include productions for Netflix, Showmax, and Amazon Prime Video. Veteran television director Rachel Raimist and CBS’s “S.W.A.T.” creator Aaron Rahsaan Thomas are leading the 10-day workshop.

Public masterclasses will be held July 20-24 at venues across Accra, including Google Accra and Silverbird Cinemas. Industry leaders Quan Phung, Paul Garnes, and Sidra Smith will lead discussions on project development, pitching, packaging, mobile cinema, micro-dramas, and strategies for bringing African productions to market.

The program’s centerpiece, the Creative Economy Summit, will take place on July 22 at Google Accra. The event will bring together filmmakers, technology companies, investors, corporate executives, policymakers, and cultural institutions to examine how storytelling, innovation, and capital can accelerate growth across Ghana’s creative economy.

“Africa is producing extraordinary creative talent, but the next chapter of growth depends on building stronger professional networks, developing globally competitive projects, and creating meaningful pathways to investment and international collaboration,” Abubakar said in a statement.

She said the initiative is intended to become a long-term platform connecting African creators with global industry leaders, technology companies, and investors.

“We want creatives to leave not only inspired, but better connected, better equipped, and better positioned to compete on the global stage,” Abubakar said in the statement.

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