Nigerian creatives lose half their workweek to admin, payment delays, NECLive report finds
By Aboki Forex —
Nigerian creative professionals are spending too much of their working week on administrative tasks and chasing payments, not on creative work. That is the key finding of a new report by NECLive, titled The State of Nigeria’s Creative Economy 2026.
The report surveyed 377 creative professionals across eight sectors. It found that 19.6% of respondents lose more than 50% of their weekly working time to administrative duties. That means about one in five creatives spends more time on paperwork than on producing creative output.
What the data is saying
The survey covered professionals in advertising and marketing, digital content creation and influencing, film and video, music and audio, technology and gaming, design, fashion and other creative subsectors.
83% of respondents lose at least 10% of their productive time weekly to non-creative administration. 53.6% lose more than a quarter of their working time to such tasks. Specifically, 34% lose between 26% and 50% of their productive time, while 30% lose between 10% and 25%. A further 24% lose more than 50%, leaving only 17% who lose less than 10%.
The report described this as an “administration tax” on Nigeria’s creative economy. Routine tasks like logistics, sourcing and chasing payments eat into hours that could go into creative work.
“More than one in five creative professionals spends more time on administration than on creative output,” the report stated.
The problem reflects weak financial infrastructure and legal frameworks, which are more developed in mature creative markets. According to the report, if Nigeria’s creative sector recovered even half of the time lost to administration, productive output could potentially double without additional hiring or funding.
Payment delays add to productivity losses
Payment-related issues are also draining productive time. The report identified chasing payments as a major non-creative task, with respondents pointing to payment disputes and delayed compensation as persistent problems.
51% of respondents identified payment disputes as a collaboration friction point. The report called this a systemic trust deficit within the creative economy. Opaque payment systems or delayed royalties ranked as the third-largest source of waste in creative production, after unexpected on-site costs and equipment breakdowns or supply-chain delays.
So the productivity challenge facing Nigerian creatives goes beyond access to capital or equipment. Inefficient administrative and payment systems reduce the time and resources available for production.
Infrastructure adds more pressure
Nigeria’s creative economy employs an estimated 4.2 million people, according to the Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism & The Creative Economy. But infrastructure gaps continue to limit output.
About 90 million people lack access to electricity, roughly 40% to 42% of the population. Many businesses, including creative firms, rely on petrol and diesel generators or solar systems. Solar requires high upfront costs, while fuel prices remain high.
Transport is another problem. Lagos commuters spend an average of 2.2 to six hours daily in traffic, losing roughly 30 hours weekly to gridlock. The report estimates congestion in Lagos causes a productivity loss of more than 14 million hours every day, with economic costs running into trillions of naira annually. Lagos was ranked the world’s most congested city in the 2025 Mid-Year Traffic Index, ahead of Los Angeles, Delhi and San Jose.
For creative professionals already losing significant work time to administration, navigating Lagos traffic further cuts into hours available for creative production, client meetings, sourcing equipment and income-generating activities.
The report’s message for Nigeria’s creative economy is clear: fixing administrative bottlenecks and payment systems could unlock far more output from the existing workforce. That is a critical lever for a sector that already employs millions and could boost earnings for businesses and creatives across the country.