Broadcasting
Nollywood: Experts Identify Burning Issues at Roundtable
The Goethe-Institut Nigeria and Communicating for Change (CFC) recently held a roundtable event on the Nigerian film industry, looking at the issues affecting its future, as well as the progress that has been made.
The roundtable touched upon piracy, funding and distribution – all factors that have combined to produce a lull in Nigerian film production. Suggestions to strengthen the industry were also considered, with calls for more capacity building and financial investment.
The survival of Nollywood is of paramount importance as the industry not only plays an important economic role in creating employment and generating income, but also plays an important cultural role, helping to re-brand Nigeria’s tainted ‘419’ image abroad, replacing it with creativity and culture.
“Over the last five years, I’ve noticed that people are producing less films due to a fear of piracy and a lack of understanding of the new distribution framework,” said Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, an established filmmaker and founder of the annual African Movie Academy Awards (Amaa). “But more positively there’s been an improvement in the quality of films, with more Nigerian films being accepted at international film festivals.”
“Nollywood might not be here in a year due to piracy,” said Teco Benson, a film director and CEO of TFP Studios. “People can hawk films freely on the street, the fines are minimal and the NCC doesn’t have enough bite. Nollywood is the hope of this country; we need the support of government to protect intellectual property rights.”
Providing the government’s response to piracy, Emeka Ogbonna, zonal manager, Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) said: ‘Despite our insufficient funding, locally a lot has been done to regulate the production of DVDs; we have introduced regulation, minimum standards for NCC officers and undertake night time inspections of suspected piracy plants.”
“The fundamental problem is that of distribution,” said Madu Chikwendu, producer/director, and the organiser of the Lagos International Film Festival. “Outside of Nigeria, there is a huge demand for our films, and to meet this demand, our films are distributed illegitimately, resulting in a huge loss of revenue for the industry, which leads to a corresponding loss in quality. You can’t talk of quality control when people can’t afford to eat.”
John Okonkwo, Goodlife Production Ltd, based in Alaba market, spoke of the need to include all elements of the industry in distribution reforms. “Many of the main film distributors are not educated and find it difficult to relate to those that use ‘big grammar.’ It’s a big barrier and more needs to be done to carry these people along.”
“Banks and financiers are motivated by profit. They don’t want their money to go in one direction; they need to know that their money will get back to them, with a return,” said Yewande Sadiku, head of Corporate Finance, Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, addressing the difficulties of filmmakers in obtaining funding.
Chike Ofili, a poet, screenwriter and researcher of Nollywood, said: “The guilds need to represent the industry and be a place for dialogue, a place for scriptwriters and producers to meet and critique their work. When mental infrastructure has been built, other things can follow.”
Similarly, Jahman Anikulapo, a notable Nigerian art critic and editor of The Guardian on Sunday newspaper highlighted his disappointments regarding the industries priorities. “Instead of celebrating individuals and short term successes, the industry needs to take a long term view, by building lasting structures that will improve Nollywood,” he said.
“Despite its challenges, Nollywood is developing,” said Sandra Mbanefo Obigao, executive director, CFC, who chaired the roundtable. “CFC is committed to using its unique position, as a producer of development films and a champion of the creative industries, to encourage stronger links between the creative and commercial sectors as well as between film and Nigeria’s rich and well developed art and literary scene.”
Broadcasting Organization of Nigeria (BON) has established six committees to help strengthen and modernize the country’s broadcasting industry.
The committees will focus on content creation, skills development, digital transformation, sustainability, policy and commercial opportunities
The initiative aims to support industry growth and improve collaboration between broadcasters, regulators and media experts
The official launch recently, was led by Tony Akiotu, president, BON and attended by media professionals, program directors, former journalists and heads of specialized media organizations.
The event brought together several prominent figures in Nigeria’s media industry, including veteran broadcaster and trainer Bimbo Oloyede, Tony Uyah of M4S TV, Kingsley Uranta of Channels Television, Ismael Sani of Platinum TV and Ibrahim Shehu of Trust TV.
Together, they are expected to help drive innovation and support the growth of Nigeria’s broadcasting sector.
According to Akiotu, the committees are intended both to help shape industry policy and to provide a forum for dialogue between BON and broadcasting experts.
Akiotu said the ad hoc committees were intended to strengthen BON’s work and ensure that the umbrella body for Nigeria’s broadcasters played a more direct and meaningful role in developing the country’s broadcasting sector.
The six committees reflect the sector’s main priorities. The first focuses on collaboration and innovation to promote content creation.
The second is dedicated to training and talent development, while the third focuses on industry sustainability by improving the sector’s long-term financial viability.
A fourth committee will focus on digital transformation and work with the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) on regulatory issues.
The remaining two committees will oversee public policy advocacy and the development of sports and commercial rights to help broadcasters increase revenue and attract more investment. Together, the committees are expected to guide BON’s efforts to modernize and strengthen Nigeria’s broadcasting industry.
The committees, chaired by members of BON’s General Assembly and supported by the organization’s Secretariat, have an initial 12-month mandate that may be renewed if necessary.
They are required to submit a progress report within three months and implement approved recommendations within the following six months.
The arrangement is intended to ensure close oversight and the timely implementation of their work.
Akiotu also reminded committee members that Nigeria pioneered television broadcasting in Africa and urged them to carry out their work with greater effectiveness and efficiency.
Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) says it is investigating about 34 tertiary institutions over allegations that they failed to refund students whose tuition fees were paid twice under the Federal Government’s student loan scheme.
The Managing Director of NELFUND, Mr Akintunde Sawyerr, disclosed this during an interview on Arise Television.
Sawyerr said the agency had deployed a five-member investigative team, including operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and internal auditors, to examine the allegations.
According to him, the investigation was prompted by numerous complaints received from affected students.
“As of right now, there are 34 institutions that we are looking at closely with respect to this issue,” he said.
Sawyerr explained that the double payment issue arose because President Bola Tinubu directed that the student loan scheme commence in the middle of an academic session instead of at the beginning.
He said the decision compelled many students to pay their tuition fees to meet registration deadlines while awaiting approval of their loan applications.
“What happened is that a lot of schools got double payment; some from the students and some from us,” he said.
“The refund process is entirely out of our hands. It is the recipient of the double payments that is obliged to make refunds to the students.”
The NELFUND boss noted that many students had borrowed money from family members, friends and other sources to pay their tuition with the expectation of receiving refunds once the loans were disbursed.
He said while some institutions had promptly refunded affected students, others had failed to do so.
“Some have been very good at this. Others haven’t been so good at it,” Sawyerr said.
“I reserve judgement on the intentionality around it because, for some of them, they just didn’t have the process to make refunds.”
Sawyerr disclosed that NELFUND was exploring a tokenised payment system that would enable students to authorise tuition payments directly to their institutions, thereby reducing the likelihood of duplicate payments.
He said the agency deliberately chose not to disburse tuition loans directly to students to minimise the risk of fund diversion.
“Paying the funds to the students could really lead to the temptation for them to divert and do other things,” he said.
The managing director, however, acknowledged that NELFUND lacked the statutory powers to compel institutions to refund students or prosecute officials found culpable.
He added that many frustrated students had submitted complaints not only to NELFUND but also to anti-corruption agencies, including the EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
Sawyerr also expressed concern over increases in tuition fees by some institutions following the introduction of the student loan scheme.
He said NELFUND had declined to pay institutions that increased their tuition fees beyond acceptable levels.
“Some schools, because they get paid easily, started to put up their fees. We refused, point blank, to pay institutions who had hiked their fees beyond a certain level,” he said.
He reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to investigating every reported irregularity and strengthening the implementation of the student loan programme through continuous monitoring and internal reviews.
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