MBABANE - The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) officially opened its Africa Performance Rights Conference (PRC) 2026 in Lagos, on Tuesday, March 31.
The event attracted a high-calibre gathering of Africa’s leading recording industry executives, including record label chiefs, Music Licensing Companies (MLCs), Collective Management Organisations (CMOs) and heads of various industry bodies.
The Honourable Hannatu Musawa, Nigeria’s Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, officially opened the proceedings. Addressing the delegates, she highlighted the continent’s rapid emergence on the global stage. “Africa is no longer at the margins of the global music industry, we are its fastest-growing frontier. IFPI’s own data confirms this. In 2025, Sub-Saharan Africa’s recorded music revenues grew by 15.2 per cent to USD 120 million, placing our region joint second-fastest growing in the world. Digital revenues surged by over 20 per cent. Subscription streaming alone added USD 12.5 million in new value. These are not abstract numbers — they represent the creative labour and artistic brilliance of African musicians reaching audiences they have never reached before,” Musawa stated.
Themed ‘Addressing challenges and leveraging opportunities to drive the sustainable growth of recorded music in Africa’, the conference follows the 2025 PRC held in Cape Town.
That previous meeting established a framework for addressing critical gaps in sound recording collective management across the region.
Lauri Rechardt, IFPI’s Chief Legal Officer, emphasised the essential nature of these administrative bodies. “Collective management organisations play an important role in the recorded music value chain and have the vital duty to effectively and efficiently license broadcasters and public performance users of recorded music as well as distributing the royalties in line with standard practice,” he said.
The Lagos conference serves as a pivotal moment for the industry to measure progress and review how effectively the commitments made in Cape Town are being implemented. A cornerstone of the opening day was a high-level panel featuring Minister Musawa alongside prominent industry figures. Moderated by Angela Ndambuki, IFPI Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Director, the discussion moved beyond theory to tackle the practical barriers hindering industry growth. The panel explored proven global solutions that could be adapted to help Africa’s recording industry secure its rightful place in the international market. A primary focus was the urgent need for regional governments to modernise copyright laws. Panellists argued for enhanced protection against all forms of piracy and the implementation of robust enforcement actions specifically targeting digital piracy sites.
“The gap between cultural influence and economic return is the defining challenge for this generation of African music leaders. Closing that gap requires action on three fronts, a robust intellectual property framework, transparent and effective collective management and the physical and digital infrastructure to support a modern music ecosystem,” noted Musawa.
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The representatives from the different African countries at the conference. (Courtesy pics)