Abidjan to Host Africa’s First-Ever Animation Film Market

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, will host the inaugural African Animation Film Market (MAFA) in November 2026, marking it as the first dedicated marketplace for the business of animation on the African continent.

The event is designed to bring together creators, producers, broadcasters, investors, digital platforms, television networks, and animation studios from across Africa and beyond, creating a central hub where projects can move from development into financing, production, and international distribution. Alongside the announcement, MAFA has opened submissions for African creators working on short films, feature films, television series, and student projects.

Unlike a traditional film festival, which primarily showcases completed works, MAFA is structured as an industry market where creators can pitch projects, secure funding, negotiate distribution deals, explore co-production opportunities, and build relationships with global partners. Organisers expect more than 10,000 participants at the inaugural edition, underscoring growing confidence in the commercial potential of African animation.

The launch comes as Africa’s animation industry gains increasing international attention. Demand for diverse stories and original intellectual property continues to grow across streaming platforms, broadcasters and gaming companies, creating new opportunities for African studios to develop globally competitive content rooted in local cultures and storytelling traditions. By creating a dedicated marketplace, MAFA aims to accelerate the commercialisation of African animation rather than limiting it to exhibition and festival circuits.

The market also reflects broader momentum in Côte d’Ivoire’s animation ecosystem. Earlier this year, Abidjan hosted the Abidjan Animation Film Festival (FFAA), which celebrates African and international animation through screenings and competitions spanning short films, feature films, television series, student productions, and pitch projects. Together, the festival and the newly announced market position the city as one of the continent’s emerging centres for animation.

Industry leaders also see the initiative as a response to longstanding structural challenges facing African animation, including limited financing, shortages of specialised talent and the need for stronger production capacity. MAFA intends to address these gaps by facilitating business matchmaking among studios, broadcasters, producers, and investors, while supporting training initiatives to strengthen the industry’s workforce.

The timing is significant. Africa’s animation and broader creative ecosystem is projected to generate approximately $15.7 billion in 2025, highlighting the sector’s growing economic importance alongside its cultural influence. As investment increases and international demand for original African stories continues to expand, dedicated industry platforms such as MAFA are becoming essential infrastructure for transforming creative talent into sustainable businesses.

More broadly, the launch of Africa’s first animation film market signals the continued maturation of the continent’s animation industry. As African creators produce increasingly ambitious films and series, the sector is evolving beyond isolated productions into a connected ecosystem with the financing, partnerships, and commercial platforms needed to compete on the global stage while bringing more African stories to audiences around the world.