The development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC), following its recently concluded National Dialogue held in collaboration with National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), has sponsored four creatives for the Legally Smart Creators Course (LSCC) as part of efforts to address one of the most consistent concerns raised during the engagement, the need for stronger awareness and education around intellectual property rights and legal protections for creatives in Nigeria.
Throughout the dialogue, participants repeatedly highlighted the challenges creatives face in understanding ownership rights, contracts, licensing provisions, content protection, and broader intellectual property frameworks within the creative industry. Stakeholders emphasized that many creatives continue to lose value from their work due to limited legal literacy and inadequate access to structured intellectual property education.
In response to these concerns, dRPC facilitated scholarship opportunities for selected creatives to participate in the Legally Smart Creators Course, a virtual programme focused on practical legal knowledge for creators, including intellectual property rights, contracts, content usage, and legal safeguards within the creative economy.
As a direct outcome of the dialogue, a total of four creatives has now been sponsored for the programme. One participant was sponsored by the LSCC team itself, two participants were sponsored by dRPC, while an additional participant was sponsored by another supporting firm in solidarity with the initiative.
The beneficiaries are:
1. Paul-Esopofo Oriade _ Film Maker
2. Patricia Nnenna Bernard _ Storyteller/Writer
3. Abdul’ahad Dalhat _ Spoken Word Artiste
4. Akolo Anthony James _ Film maker
The sponsorship initiative reflects dRPC’s continued commitment to strengthening the creative ecosystem through capacity building, policy engagement, and access to critical knowledge that enables creatives to protect and maximise the value of their work.
dRPC also commends the collaborative support received from partner organisations and stakeholders who contributed to making the opportunity possible, further demonstrating the importance of multi-stakeholder action in advancing sustainable support systems for creatives in Nigeria.
