Women across Africa’s creative industries are increasingly focusing on ownership, of ideas, platforms and distribution, as the real measure of progress, according to a piece released ahead of International Women’s Day.
In the commentary distributed by APO Group Insights, Libby Allen, Vice President of Brand and Creative at APO Group, argues that the key question for women in creative sectors is no longer simply representation, but who controls the value created by their work.
Allen notes that the debate around gender equality in creative industries is shifting toward economic power, intellectual property and narrative control, especially as African creatives compete in a rapidly evolving global digital economy.
One example highlighted is Senegalese entrepreneur Diarra Bousso, founder of fashion and lifestyle brand DIARRABLU. Bousso combines mathematical algorithms with on-demand production to design garments, a model that reduces waste while keeping both the intellectual property and production largely within Senegal.
In South Africa, the Johannesburg-based game studio Nyamakop has taken a similar approach with its recently released video game Relooted. The heist adventure game, set in a futuristic Johannesburg, revolves around recovering African artefacts held in Western museums. Narrative director Mohale Mashigo said the project was designed so that each artefact corresponds to a real object tied to a specific African community, anchoring the story firmly in its cultural context.
Nigeria’s media entrepreneur Mo Abudu is also cited as building ownership through distribution. Her company, EbonyLife Media, launched the membership-based streaming platform EbonyLife ON Plus last year, aiming to keep more of the value generated by African storytelling within the continent.
Allen argues that controlling the “value capture point” in the creative chain, whether design systems, storytelling frameworks, or distribution platforms, is increasingly central to long-term success.
The issue is becoming more urgent as generative artificial intelligence expands. Many AI systems are trained on vast amounts of creative material without direct compensation to creators, raising questions about intellectual property and compensation, particularly in regions where formal IP frameworks remain uneven.
According to Allen, African creatives, especially women, face the risk of their cultural and artistic output being used to train systems they do not control.
She also stresses that narrative control extends beyond intellectual property to communications and media visibility. Africa’s 54 countries each have distinct markets, languages and media environments, making local expertise critical for effective storytelling and brand communications.
Allen further emphasised that the real measure of progress will be whether women creators gain greater control over their work, their platforms and the narratives built around them.
