Attendees can look forward to engaging with experts from TikTok, YouTube, Twitter and more to be announced.

"Through a series of curated content, the summit will present the landscape and size of the creator economy, as well as identify current and future opportunities and how to access them," says Naledi Mosieane, managing director at Oviedo Media.

Catering for an ecosystem beyond influencers

According to Oviedo Media, while many may think of creators as the influencers that we see selling their lifestyle, products and tutorials, beyond that surface is:
  • an entire ecosystem made up of creators (independent writers, artists, social media influencers, videographers, gamers and podcasters)
  • the platforms they're native to
  • the brands that are collaborating with them, and
  • the solutions they're optimising to turn creation into careers.
This is the collective '#TheADCS' will bring together, adds Oviedo Media.

"It'll help those who'd like to break into the sector and those who are already active, directing them on how to level up to create sustainable careers and businesses. For marketers, it'll be an opportunity to delve deeper into developing meaningful relationships with creators, centred on co-creation that is authentic and valuable in meeting new customer expectations," adds Mosieane.

"And for startups, it'll be a chance to not only showcase their solutions, but also to identify the gaps in them and perhaps even find new creator needs to cater to," says Mosieane.

Harnessing the creator economy to rewrite the fate of Africa's youth

According to the event, it's not surprising that young people who grew up with technology and the Internet (namely Gen Z), are at the forefront of this emerging economy.

In a time where consumer tech, like smartphones, is democratising digital content creation and social media is giving users a platform to instantly share their content with a global audience, this generation is capitalising on its differentiated talents – and in turn disrupting the job landscape of the future. 

On a continent facing a youth unemployment crisis and an education system ill-fitted to keep up with a fast-changing world, this kind of disruption is essential, adds the event.

Included in '#TheADCS's' event tracks is content focused on the potential of the creator economy to:
  • remedy the enormous unemployment problem
  • deliver accessible education, and
  • democratise entrepreneurship, which organisers hope will help mobilise and energise young Africans to reshape their economic futures.

The challenges of being a creator in Africa

While the global creator economy is booming, and African creators make up a sizable portion of it, being a content creator on the continent is hard, says the event. Some of the challenges facing creators include: 
  • payment platform issues
  • a lack of tailored financial products
  • the economic realities that make monetising African audiences tricky, and
  • creator solutions being predominantly built for Western economic and cultural contexts, 
"While the creator economy is a global phenomenon, as far as we're concerned, it's the African continent that stands to profit from it the most. But in order for that to happen, we need to (openly) have critical conversations about this ecosystem," says Mosieane. 

"Our hope in launching the ADCS is that it'll be a platform to engage with the next generation of entrepreneurs and the platforms, brands and startups enabling them, so we can collectively create the solutions the African creator economy needs to grow exponentially," Mosieane concludes.

Individuals who would like to explore sponsorship or activation opportunities are encouraged to email [email protected]. To be considered to speak or run a masterclass, individuals are encouraged to complete this application form.

For more information, visit www.theadcs.com. You can also follow the African Digital Creator Summit on Facebook, Twitter or on Instagram.