Ibadan Creators Summit 2026 brings city’s creative community together in landmark gathering

The Ibadan Creators Summit 2026 has concluded its first edition with about 3,500 creators, entrepreneurs and creative professionals gathering in Ibadan for a day of learning, networking and career development.

Held on September 5 at 3–5 Harvesters Drive, Ring Road, Ibadan, the summit was built around the theme “Build. Monetize. Scale.”, with sessions focused on helping creators turn their skills into sustainable careers and businesses.

Convened by Amb. Dr Adesola Adeyemi, the summit brought together creators at different stages of their journeys, giving participants access to practical conversations around building their craft, earning from their work and growing beyond their current level.

Commenting on the turnout, Amb. Dr Adesola said he was pleased to see the vision behind the summit become a successful gathering and expressed satisfaction with the response from Ibadan’s creative community.

“I am genuinely happy with how the summit turned out. The intention was to create a space where creators in Ibadan could come together, learn, connect and leave with a clearer sense of what they can do next with their skills. Seeing thousands of people show up and engage with that vision was deeply fulfilling,” Adesola said.

One of the major outcomes of the summit came through the attendance of the Oyo State governorship6 candidate of the APM, who sponsored 50 youths and creators to train with BizLift Academy and become professional digital marketers.

That opportunity was further expanded by Tradestack, one of the summit’s sponsors, which sponsored an additional 5 participants to take part in the digital marketing class.

The sponsorship extends the impact of the event beyond the summit itself, providing the selected participants with an opportunity to develop practical digital marketing skills that can support employment, entrepreneurship and their creative careers.

Throughout the day, participants interacted with speakers, met other creators and exchanged ideas around the opportunities and challenges involved in building sustainable careers in the creative economy.

Several attendees also connected with potential collaborators and expanded their professional networks beyond social media.

One attendee, who preferred not to be named, described the summit as an opportunity to meet people facing similar challenges while gaining a better understanding of how to approach the business side of creative work.

“What stood out for me was that it was not just about listening to speakers. I met creators I had never met before, exchanged contacts and had conversations that could lead to actual collaborations. I also left with a better idea of how to position what I do as something I can build into a real business,” the attendee said.

The summit featured Salem King, Stella Matthew, Balogun Danjuma, Tessy Olotta, Kemi Deborah, Folashade Ogunyemi, Hon. Seyi Adisa, Samuel Okike, Folake Mighty, Adebayo Ibrahim, Alamu Akinkunmi, Ajoke Lasisi, Victoria Ajiboye, Ayo Adams, Babatunmise Agboola, Olivia Umeh, The Coach and Hon. Akinshete.

Their sessions covered different aspects of creative and professional development while reinforcing the summit’s focus on practical growth.

The turnout also provided a visible indication of the size of Ibadan’s creator community, an ecosystem Adeyemi had previously highlighted as lacking sufficient city-level documentation despite the number of people building careers across content, media, technology and other creative sectors.

The successful gathering has now helped place greater attention on that community while showing the potential for Ibadan to support a stronger network of creators who can build sustainable careers without feeling compelled to relocate elsewhere.

The scale and experience of the summit were strengthened by organisations that supported the event as sponsors, helping the organisers deliver a successful gathering for thousands of creators.

StudyPlace served as the headline sponsor, supporting the summit’s focus on helping creators build sustainable careers from their skills.

Other sponsors included Samdech, ALT Bank, Topmind Fans, UAC Foods, Pressdia, Tradestack, MyCityApp, Jogor Hotel and Bimolara International Hospital.

Pressdia also served as a media partner, supporting visibility for the event and its wider goal of strengthening Ibadan’s creative community.

With its first edition successfully concluded, the Ibadan Creators Summit has established a new meeting point for the city’s growing creator economy, with the relationships formed, lessons shared and training opportunities created extending its impact beyond the day itself.