Creatives continue to actively position themselves to grow the industry that has the potential to drive economic growth, create employment, and foster cultural development.
 
It is for this reason that the Creative Industry Institute Africa, a Namibian-based creative hub, launched the Creative Industry Guide 2026 National Mapping Campaign.
 
With the announcement by the Head of State as one of the priority areas of the 8th administration, deliberate actions have been ongoing among creatives.
 
While launching the mapping campaign, which calls for creatives to register or update their profiles for a comprehensive database of creatives in the country, the Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture, Dino Ballotti, highlighted the need for comprehensive data on the creative industry.
 
Ballotti advocated for measurable economic intelligence and stronger collaboration within the creative sector.
 
 “I want us to be mindful of the fact that we simply cannot unlock the full potential of the sector without first developing a clear and evidence-based understanding of it. We need reliable and comprehensive data to tell us who is working in the creative industries, where they are located, what economic activity they are generating, and what skills and capabilities they possess, as well as the skills they may still need.”

The Creative Industry Guide 2026 campaign supports the national priority by building a stronger evidence base for investment, policy development, skills planning, market access and increased visibility for Namibia's creative professionals and businesses.
 
Since 2018, the guide has been documenting Namibia's creative economy businesses, organisations and professionals.
 
 It also provides valuable industry insights across disciplines ranging from architecture and film to music, design, crafts, fashion, and the visual arts.
 
Founder of Creative Industry Institute Africa, Joel Haikali, explained. "What is really important this time around is what we haven’t done before. We have tried to centralise all this information, and each subscriber will have their own profile where they can add, submit, and update their information.”
 
Arts Director: Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts, and Culture, M'Kariko Amagulu, added.
 
"By mapping Namibia’s creative professionals, enterprises, organisations and institutions, we are creating more than just a directory. We are building a national knowledge base that can help inform policy, guide investment, identify gaps, strengthen advocacy, and improve decision-making across the creative industries. The more complete our understanding of the creative ecosystem, the better positioned we are to develop programmes that respond to the needs of our creatives and unlock the full potential of the sector.”
 
Creatives are encouraged to register online on the website of the Creative Industry Institute Africa.