thesilkroadtoday
Mashariki Creative Economy Expo 2026 | Dar es Salaam, Tanzania | 21 August 2026
The Trading in Rights for Literary Storytellers initiative is a specialized literary rights marketplace to be held within the Mashariki Creative Economy Expo 2026, co-hosted by the Publishers Association of Tanzania (PATA). The initiative seeks to transform African literature from isolated creative output into tradable and investable intellectual property (IP) by creating a practical marketplace where rights holders and buyers can meet, negotiate, and initiate commercial partnerships.
The marketplace will focus on a broad range of rights, including translation rights, territorial and distribution rights, reprint rights, audiobook and audio adaptation rights, digital licensing, educational-use rights, and book-to-screen adaptation opportunities. Rather than functioning as a discussion forum alone, the programme is structured to generate real commercial outcomes through curated matchmaking and post-event follow-up.
The initiative comes at a strategically important moment. According to UNESCO’s 2025 mapping of Africa’s book industry, the sector currently generates approximately US$7 billion annually, with the potential to reach US$18.5 billion if supported by stronger infrastructure and market systems. Realizing this growth requires more than publishing new books; it demands intentional rights trading across languages, formats, and territories. The marketplace therefore positions literary IP as an emerging asset class within Africa’s creative economy.
The programme’s primary objective is to establish an accessible entry point for licensing African literary works and facilitating their circulation across multiple platforms. It aims to showcase rights-ready literary properties, connect sellers with acquisition-oriented buyers, improve rights preparedness among creators and publishers, and create a sustainable pipeline of licensing and adaptation opportunities.
Participants include publishers, authors, literary agents, audio companies, screen producers, distributors, digital platforms, investors, and legal and rights specialists. Sellers are expected to present clearly documented rights information, concise pitches, and buyer-friendly materials. Buyers will gain access to carefully curated literary properties and participate in structured meetings designed to maximize discovery and efficiency.
The programme architecture includes a high-level panel on literary rights trading in Africa, a curated seller showcase, pre-scheduled one-on-one business meetings, a rights and legal advisory desk, and a networking reception integrated into the Expo’s Gala Night. Importantly, the marketplace extends beyond the one-day event through pre-event preparation and a 90-day post-Expo follow-up mechanism intended to nurture negotiations and partnerships.
Needed Points of Action
- Curate a catalogue of 20–30 rights-ready literary properties.
- Identify and invite acquisition-focused buyers from publishing, audio, screen, education, and digital sectors.
- Prepare rights sheets, synopses, and standardized pitch materials.
- Organize and facilitate pre-scheduled B2B meetings.
- Provide legal and advisory support regarding ownership and licensing structures.
- Establish a 90-day follow-up system to monitor manuscript requests, adaptation reviews, option agreements, and licensing negotiations.
- Document outcomes and lessons learned to scale the initiative into a more mature African literary rights marketplace in future editions.
Ultimately, the initiative seeks to build a sustainable ecosystem in which African stories become internationally discoverable, commercially viable, and strategically positioned within the global creative economy.
