The Attention Economy and Rwanda’s Opportunity to Monetize Creativity

 

In the digital age, attention has become one of the most valuable economic resources. Platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and podcasts are no longer merely spaces for entertainment; they are global marketplaces where attention is converted into revenue, influence, and long-term economic power. This system—commonly described as the attention economy—rewards those who can consistently attract, retain, and monetize public attention through digital content.

A compelling illustration of this phenomenon is the rise of the American YouTuber MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson), who has built an estimated USD 5 billion empire almost entirely from content. His trajectory demonstrates that creativity, when combined with scale, legal certainty, and monetization infrastructure, can evolve into a globally competitive industry. While MrBeast’s success is often viewed as an individual story, it is in fact a product of an ecosystem that recognizes content as intellectual property, supports platform-based monetization, and provides predictable legal and commercial frameworks.

The attention economy operates on a simple but powerful premise: human attention is scarce, and digital platforms compete aggressively to capture it. Those who succeed in this competition are able to transform views into advertising revenue, brand partnerships, licensing deals, merchandise, and scalable enterprises. Crucially, this economy does not rely on extractive resources or heavy physical infrastructure. It depends on creativity, digital skills, access to technology, and—most importantly—an enabling legal and policy environment.

This is where Rwanda’s opportunity, and its current challenge, become clear. Rwanda has invested significantly in digital transformation, youth empowerment, and the creative industries. However, despite the growth of talented content creators, Rwanda is not yet a jurisdiction where digital content can be easily and reliably monetized. As a result, many Rwandan creators are compelled to register accounts, or even residency ties in countries such as the United States or Canada in order to access platform monetization tools, advertising revenue, and brand partnerships. This externalization of value means that while the creativity is Rwandan, the revenue, tax base, and legal recognition often accrue elsewhere.

The experience of MrBeast highlights what becomes possible when content is treated as a serious economic asset. His videos, formats, and brand are protected as intellectual property. His enterprise operates within clear corporate, tax, and contractual frameworks. Advertising agreements, platform revenue-sharing mechanisms, and licensing arrangements function predictably because the law recognizes and supports this form of economic activity. In contrast, where monetization frameworks are unclear or inaccessible, creators are forced to operate informally or offshore, limiting both personal growth and national economic benefit.

Another timely illustration of the power of the attention economy is the global world tour of the American content creator IShowSpeed, whose planned visit to Rwanda forms part of a broader content-driven travel project. Unlike traditional tourism or media delegations, IShowSpeed’s travels are financed almost entirely through monetized attention—platform revenue, sponsorships, brand partnerships, and audience-driven engagement generated by his content. His ability to fund international travel, production, and distribution through digital platforms underscores how focused audience building and consistent engagement translate directly into economic capacity. For Rwanda, his visit demonstrates that content creation is no longer a hobby but a scalable business model capable of financing global mobility, cultural exchange, and economic value creation. The key lesson lies in focus and monetization: creators who understand their audience, leverage platform algorithms, and operate within supportive legal and commercial frameworks can convert attention into sustainable income streams, while host countries benefit from organic global visibility without traditional marketing expenditure.

Rwanda already possesses an institutional foundation capable of addressing this gap. The Ministry of Youth and Arts, through the Arts Promotion General Directorate, is responsible for advancing Rwanda’s creative industries by designing and implementing policies, supporting artistic start-ups, promoting Rwandan arts domestically and internationally, strengthening federations, monitoring impact, and ensuring compliance with legal frameworks. These functions align directly with the needs of a modern attention economy, even though that economy increasingly operates in digital rather than traditional artistic spaces.

The challenge, therefore, is not a lack of vision but the need to adapt existing frameworks to the realities of monetized digital content. Legislative reform has a critical role to play in recognizing digital content creation as a legitimate economic activity, clarifying the legal status of content creators, and ensuring that intellectual property laws explicitly protect online works, formats, and brands. When creators can register, protect, and commercialize their content domestically, the incentive to relocate monetization structures abroad is significantly reduced.

Beyond legislation, practical government policy is equally important. Rwanda’s creative economy strategies can be expanded to include digital content incubation, access to production infrastructure, training in platform monetization, and facilitation of relationships with global platforms and advertisers. Public-private partnerships, particularly with telecommunications companies and digital payment providers, can help close the monetization gap that currently pushes creators toward foreign jurisdictions.

The implications of getting this right extend far beyond individual income. A functioning attention economy supports youth employment, entrepreneurship, cultural export, and national branding. It allows young Rwandans to tell their own stories, shape global narratives, and generate sustainable livelihoods without leaving the country. It also ensures that the economic value generated by Rwandan creativity contributes to Rwanda’s tax base, innovation ecosystem, and long-term development goals.

MrBeast’s success demonstrates that attention, when strategically harnessed, can generate extraordinary economic value. Rwanda does not need to replicate the American model wholesale, but it can draw critical lessons from it. With deliberate legal instruments, practical policies, and institutional alignment, Rwanda can move from being a producer of unmonetized attention to a jurisdiction where creativity is lawfully recognized, economically rewarded, and globally competitive. The attention economy is already shaping the future; the remaining question is whether Rwanda will continue to export its creators—or build an ecosystem that allows them to thrive at home.