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Nigeria’s creative economy is losing a significant share of its productive capacity to administrative work, payment disputes and infrastructure challenges, according to the State of Nigeria’s Creative Economy 2026 report by NECLive.
The report, which surveyed 377 creative professionals across eight subsectors, found that routine non-creative responsibilities are consuming substantial portions of the working week that could otherwise be devoted to producing creative work.
‘Administration Tax’ Weighs on Creative Output
The findings show that 83% of respondents lose at least 10% of their productive time each week to administrative responsibilities.
More than half, or 53.6%, said such activities consume over a quarter of their weekly working time, while 19.6% reported losing more than half of their working week to non-creative tasks.
The activities include logistics, sourcing, contract-related responsibilities and following up on outstanding payments.
The report describes this productivity drain as an “administration tax”, arguing that inefficient business and financial systems are forcing creative professionals to spend valuable hours managing operational issues rather than creating.
According to the report, recovering even half of the time currently lost to administration could potentially double productive output without requiring additional hiring or funding.
Payment Disputes Remain a Major Friction Point
Payment-related challenges emerged as another significant obstacle for the sector.
The report found that 51% of respondents identified payment disputes as a major source of friction in collaborations, pointing to persistent trust and payment-system weaknesses within the creative economy.
Delayed royalties and opaque payment processes were also ranked as the third-largest source of waste in creative production, behind unexpected on-site costs and equipment breakdowns or supply-chain delays.
The findings indicate that access to finance alone may not be enough to improve productivity if creatives continue to spend substantial time pursuing payments and resolving financial disagreements.
Infrastructure Adds to the Pressure
The productivity challenge extends beyond administrative work.
The report identifies unreliable electricity and internet connectivity among the major day-to-day constraints facing Nigeria’s creative professionals.
Nigeria still has an estimated electricity access deficit affecting about 90 million people, forcing households and businesses to depend heavily on generators or invest in alternative energy systems.
For creatives whose work increasingly depends on digital tools, online collaboration, content distribution and cloud-based services, unreliable power and connectivity can further disrupt production.
Transport challenges also add to the burden, particularly in Lagos, where long commuting times can reduce the hours available for creative production, meetings and other income-generating activities.
Creative Economy Supports Millions of Nigerians
The findings are significant given the size and growing influence of Nigeria’s creative sector.
Data from the Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy estimates that the industry supports about 4.2 million jobs.
Nigeria’s music, film, fashion, advertising, digital-content and other creative industries have also gained international visibility, but the report suggests that the systems supporting those professionals have not developed at the same pace.
The challenge, therefore, is increasingly about building the infrastructure and commercial systems needed to turn creative talent into sustainable economic value.
From Talent to Stronger Systems
The report’s findings suggest that Nigeria’s creative economy does not necessarily face a shortage of talent. Instead, weaknesses in administration, payments, infrastructure, financing and professional systems are limiting how efficiently that talent can be deployed.
Earlier reporting on the study showed that 52% of respondents identified poor project briefing as a major collaboration problem, while payment disputes were cited by 51%. Access to funding and distribution was also identified as the sector’s biggest structural gap.
For creative businesses seeking international opportunities, payment processing and foreign-exchange challenges remain particularly important. The report found that 57% of export-related barriers were linked to payment processing and FX issues, suggesting that financial infrastructure remains a major constraint on the global commercialisation of Nigerian creative products.
The Bigger Picture
The report presents Nigeria’s creative economy as an industry with substantial talent and global influence but one whose supporting infrastructure still needs significant improvement.
Reducing administrative bottlenecks, improving payment systems, strengthening electricity and internet access, expanding financing and establishing clearer professional frameworks could allow creatives to devote more of their working time to production.
For Nigeria, the potential payoff extends beyond individual creators. A more efficient creative ecosystem could increase output, improve export earnings and create more sustainable opportunities across music, film, fashion, advertising, technology, design and digital content.
The central message from the findings is clear: Nigeria’s creative economy may not need more talent as much as it needs better systems to help existing talent spend more time creating and less time chasing the processes surrounding their work.
