Across the G20, the understanding of infrastructure is expanding. Once limited to roads, ports, and energy, the term now encompasses digital systems, environmental assets, and the foundational rails of modern economies. The next logical extension of this thinking is culture—our oldest form of value creation, identity, and exchange.
This report, developed by the Africa Investor (Ai) Group in collaboration with the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), and AXM Technologies Corp., argues that cultural intellectual property (IP) must now be recognized as a fiduciary-grade infrastructure domain. It sets out the framework for governments, multilateral institutions, and investors to build the systems—registries, standards, and
governance protocols—that can unlock culture as an investable public asset.
Culture is not only memory; it is a macroeconomic engine. Its revenues flow through creative industries, tourism, digital platforms, and now, artificial intelligence. Yet its rights and governance systems remain fragmented. By aligning policy with innovation and infrastructure with authorship, this roadmap proposes a concrete path to measure, protect, and invest in culture as a productive public good.
