Bolanle Austen-Peters’ Terra Kulture Partners IFC to Amplify Nigeria’s Creative Economy

On Friday, 30th January, at Terra Kulture, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) entered into a mandate partnership with Bolanle Austen-Peters’ Terra Kulture to support the expansion of creative infrastructure and skills development in the country. This partnership recognises the plumping Nigerian creative economy as an imperative sector for job creation, youth empowerment and economic diversification. It further 

Under the mandate partnership, IFC will support the refurbishment of Terra Kulture’s creative and training facilities in Lagos. Designed to improve access to professional creative spaces and training opportunities, this collaboration will help build a stronger and more organised creative ecosystem in Nigeria. Additionally, the partnership will also support the development, production and global sharing of Nigerian stories from an African perspective. Through its training and production model, Terra Kulture equips young creatives with industry-relevant skills, professional networks and pathways into employment and entrepreneurship across theatre, film, visual arts and cultural production.

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. It operates in more than 100 countries, using capital, expertise and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing economies. In the 2025 fiscal year, IFC committed a record $71.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, helping to mobilise private capital to reduce poverty and promote sustainable development.

Over the years, Terra Kulture has been known for staging famous productions (Saro the Musical, Wakaa the Musical, and Fela and the Kalakuta Queens), a 450-seater theatre arena dedicated for performing arts, a respected space for visual arts in West Africa and recently a training ground through the Terra Academy for the Arts (TAFTA) in partnership Mastercard Foundation. Through this training, young Nigerians are equipped, for free, with training around scriptwriting, sound design and animation. Beyond the stage, Austen-Peters has a track record of producing titles like Man of God,  Collision Course, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, Bashorun Ga and others. 

With IFC’s global financial expertise, the initiative aims to institutionalize the business of arts in Africa. This strategic collaboration is designed to bolster the creative industries in Nigeria, driving institutional investment into high-quality African storytelling and expanding the reach of homegrown content to global audiences. This partnership will also help address the do-it-yourself training model that has long sustained the industry. Through the capacity building aspect of the partnership, there will be a sustainable pipeline for technical talent in the film and theater industries. Also, it will have an economic impact by creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs within the creative ecosystem, particularly for youth and women.

This collaboration which combines the artistic excellence of Terra Kulture with the financial expertise of the IFC is geared towards driving a global investment into African storytelling. Terra Kulture’s influence on the Nigerian film industry is significant courtesy of its talent pipeline program (TAFTA). This partnership will hopefully strengthen its focus on technical mastery and ensure that Nigerian films meet the rigorous standards required by international streaming platforms and global audiences.

The mandate partnership focuses on upgrading physical infrastructure to meet international production standards while simultaneously de-risking the creative sector for future institutional investors. This deal is expected to create a significant economic multiplier effect by generating thousands of jobs and integrating informal creative workers into a structured, bankable economy.