• 17TH DECEMBER, 2020
  • Lagos, Nigeria

Event

1st Roundtable Communique

The roundtable sought to be a platform for a mutually profitable Tengagement between creative and entertainment industry practitioners and their drivers stakeholders on the one part and government (federal & state), on the other part, on the issues of policy, regulatory framework, legal regime, growth and general industry environment which is geared towards generating the requisite critical mass needed to transform the industry (creative, culture, tourism and entertainment) a major revenue earner and significant contributor to Nigeria's gross domestic product (GDP).

Attendance

In attendance were 156 participants who were mainly leading industry practitioners, heads of Guilds, stakeholders, government functionaries (federal & state) and policy makers. Also in virtual attendance, via zoom platform, were over 120 online participants and notable international resource persons namely; His Excellency, Mr. Abhay Thakur, the Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, His Excellency, Dr. Fahad Al-Taffaq, United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Nigeria who were Guests of Honour at the event as well as Her Excellency, Ms. Babara Odeng-Gyasi, the Honourable Minister of Tourism, Arts and culture, Ghana.
There were also very high powered state government delegations from Sokoto and Zamfara states led by Permanent Secretary and directors of Ministry of Culture, Sokoto State and Commissioners for Budget and Economic Planning and his Information and Culture Counterpart from Zamfara State. Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the Registrar, Adver􀆟sing Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) and the Executive Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service sent representatives who also delivered Goodwill Messages. Among industry practitoners and critical stakeholders in attendance were: The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Performing Musicians Employers' Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Associa􀆟on of Movie Producers (AMP), Director Guild of Nigeria (DGN), Audio Visuals Rights Society of Nigeria (AVRSN), etc. Lagos State, being the Roundtable Host, had quality representation led by a senior director at the State's Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture who read the Welcome Address on behalf of the governor, who was unavoidably absent.
A number of papers and good will messages were presented at the Roundtable; prominent among which were the ones presented by the Honourable Minister of State for Finance, Budget and National Planning; the Hon. Minister of Information and Culture and the Lagos State Government. Several other Goodwill Messages and interventions were delivered at the Roundtable from the governments of Sokoto state and Zamfara state as well as from notable critical stakeholders. The Roundtable, at the end of the summit came up with the underlisted

Reviewed Papers

Resolutions

  • The need for Federal Government to endorse the Roundtable as an annual event and incorporate it into the Annual Calendar of Programmes of the Ministry of Budget and National Planning.
  • The need for Federal Government to officially domesticate the Roundtable in the Ministry of Budget and National Planning for proper supervision and direction and also for creating a budget line for the financial
  • The need to involve the leadership of the Roundtable in the successor-plan of medium term and long term plans for the creative, culture and tourism sectors.
  • The need to urgently secure the buy-in of the organized private sector for the roundtable, sell the creative and entertainment industry to local investors and position it for massive foreign direct investment.
  • The need for the creative and entertainment industry practitioners to do a critical valuation of the sector, harmonize their respective trade unions and guilds for better articulation, needs assessment and monitoring.
  • The need to encourage the private sector to extend their corporate social responsible activities to the maintenance of choice tourist sites across the country, as obtainable in other climes.
  • The need for government to quickly put in place, through the roundtable, a framework doe the designing of a Nigeria Creative and Entertainment Industry Master plan.
  • The need for effective collaboration between Afrocultour, Ministry of Budget and National Planning and Federal Ministry of Information and Culture in ensuring budgetary provision for the entertainment sector of the economy.
  • The need for the Ministry of Budget and National Planning to secure the support of Development Partners in funding the sector in Nigeria for economic growth and development.
  • The need for the government to reform the security architecture of Nigeria to accommodate the restoration of nightlife in our city centres, which will enable the industry to thrive and flourish sustainably.
  • The need for the government to relax the conditions attached to assessing government funding, for creative and entertainment sector purposes, considering the peculiar limitations of aspiring and young artistes.
  • The need for government to formulate policies, through loans and grants that will encourage, young talents to excel in the industry with no stringent collaterals.
  • The need to reactivate somewhat moribund Motion Pictures ACT, which will help to regulate the sector and entrench international best practices among practitioners in the industry.
  • The need for Federal Government, through Ministry of Budget and National Planning, to reach out to State Governments, particularly their Culture and Tourism and Budget and Planning Ministries for synergy, harmony in target setting, project implementation and optimal outcomes.
  • And for the purpose of sustainability, the need for government to support the Roundtable with funding of its annual budget.