Tourism Minister Demands Fair Pay for Creatives, Pushes for Return of Africa’s Stolen Cultural Artefacts

The Minister for Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, has called for stronger regional cooperation to secure fair remuneration for creative professionals and accelerate the return of African cultural properties taken from the continent.

The Minister made the call in Accra on Tuesday as she opened technical meetings to validate a study on private copying remuneration in the ECOWAS region and to advance the work of the regional committee on the restitution of cultural properties.

The meetings brought together policymakers, intellectual property experts, copyright administrators and cultural heritage stakeholders from the West Africa Sub Region.

Welcoming delegates on behalf of President John Dramani Mahama, the Minister said that the two issues were critical to protecting intellectual property, growing the creative economy and preserving Africa’s identity.

She said, “Photographers, musicians, writers, filmmakers, performers, visual artists and other creatives deserved fair recognition and appropriate compensation for their works”.

Speaking from her own experience as a creative artist, the Minister stressed the urgent need for effective private copying remuneration systems to address the reproduction of copyrighted works for personal use, especially at a time of rapid technological advancement and widespread access to digital devices.

“The creative economy continues to contribute to national development, job creation, cultural identity and regional integration. We must establish mechanisms that protect the rights and livelihoods of creators,” she said.

Dzifa Gomashie also underscored the importance of restituting African cultural heritage, describing cultural property as central to the continent’s identity and development.

For his part, the ECOWAS Representative, Dr Roland Kouakou, said the technical meetings would help advance regional efforts to protect intellectual property and recover looted artefacts.

He disclosed that the study on private copying remuneration, financed by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), would be validated and extended to all ECOWAS Member States.

According to Dr. Kouakou, the deliberations are expected to produce a roadmap for urgent actions, an action plan for the restitution of cultural properties and a validated regional document on private copying remuneration.

Dr Kouakou recalled previous regional milestones, including the adoption of a political declaration by African leaders on restitution and the validation of guidelines on the return of cultural properties in Accra in July 2023.

The WIPO representative reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to working with Member States to advance cultural development, intellectual property protection and economic growth.

The ongoing meetings are expected to strengthen regional collaboration and establish practical measures to safeguard the rights of creators while driving the recovery and preservation of Africa’s cultural heritage.

Emmanuel Quarshie Ashong, ISD