Creatives Connect Afrika (CCA), an initiative of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) in collaboration with the Black Star Experience and Africa Tourism Partners (ATP), is set to hold the maiden edition of the Creatives Connect Afrika, a festival to showcase African culture, arts, fashion and tourism assets.  For this inaugural edition, the CCA will be a three-day event from November 24 to 26 in the Ghanaian capital of Accra. 

While unveiling the event at the Movenpick Hotel, in Ikoyi, Lagos, the organizers said the  aim of the festival is to spotlight Africa’s creative and cultural industry especially in the areas of film, music and fashion as engines for trade, cross-border collaboration, and continental integration  under the AfCTA agenda.

According to them, the CCA would not only be an operational engine of partnership,  but a comprehensive project and digital platform designed to bridge the gap between African creatives and the opportunities presented by Africa’s free trade area initiative.

The core mission of CCA, they say, is to equip, connect, and empower creative entrepreneurs which include musicians, filmmakers, and fashion designers to animators, software developers, and gastronomic artists to trade their services and products across African borders seamlessly. The CCA will serve as a strategic platform for policymakers, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, and stakeholders to engage in solution-oriented discussions, identify key bottlenecks, and develop actionable strategies to unlock the full potential of the Film, Music and Fashion industries.

The first day of the event will be special master classes on the fashion, film and music industries. There will also cocktail a special programme, Accra by Night.

The programme for the day two of the festival  include opening ceremony and presidential session, high level session on creative economy, tour and film screening.

The day three and final day of the event will have cultural sessions, panel discussions on the creative and cultural industries, fashion show and music festival.

Speaking on the festival, Mr. Kwakye Donkor, the Managing Director of ATP said his company is very passionate to bring the continent together, and that every country in Africa has her uniqueness in the area of culture, arts and fashion which can be showcased.

Mrs. Emily Mburu-Ndoria, the AfCTA Director for Trade in Services, Investment, and Intellectual Property said the CCA was a significant milestone in the Africa’s development and integration agenda. She spoke further: “The upcoming forum and festival in Accra, themed ‘Creatives Connect Afrika,’ will be a pioneering event and the first of its kind under the AfCFTA.

“It is not just a gathering but a call to action, a platform for meaningful dialogue, and an opportunity to identify practical solutions that will unlock the full potential of Africa’s tourism, creative, and cultural industries.”

Also speaking on the CCA, the coordinator of the Black Star Experience, the organizing body for the 2025 event, Mr. Rex Owusu Marfo said the collaboration is to transform the continent through its creative potentials into tangible creative prosperity. The Black Star Experience the organizing body,  he said,  will act acts as the primary physical launchpad and networking hub for CCA.