Nigeria’s creative industry is grappling with a systemic trust deficit, with poor communication and payment disputes emerging as the two dominant sources of friction in creative collaborations, according to The State of Nigeria’s Creative Economy 2026, produced in partnership with Frontyard Group.
The report surveyed 377 creatives in Nigeria, revealing some striking statistics about industry collaborations. More than half (52%) of respondents cited poor briefing as a source of friction in collaborations, while 51.5% cited payment and budget disputes. These near-identical figures tell a single story.
That story, according to the report, is the absence of the operational infrastructure that professional industries take for granted: clear briefs, enforceable contracts, and reliable payment timelines.
The report calls for a standardised suite of creative-industry contracts alongside a code of payment practice. Respondents themselves pointed to the gap, with one creative noting that “legal contract templates would save hours currently spent negotiating basic terms.”
The full report is available for download at nec.ng
