I’m a young Nigerian and a broadcaster deeply concerned about the future of our nation and the media therein.
We are a country of about 231 million vibrant souls, blessed with abundant natural resources, yet nearly every sector of our economy desperately needs intervention and the Nigerian media industry, the very voice of our nation, is no exception.
Consider this; Nigeria boasts over 120 operational TV stations, more than 200 radio stations, over 130 newspapers, and 70 magazines.
There also about 124 registered outdoor firms and over 55 cinema locations pan Nigeria.
That’s a massive media landscape! Yet, paradoxically, Nigeria remains under-reported, and the media houses that should be thriving are practically struggling to survive.
Many are downsizing while others are cutting jobs, instead of expanding to cover our vast and diverse nation.
All these necessitated this question,
Is there truly no sufficient media budget within Nigeria to sustain these vital stations? The answer might surprise you.
Beyond religious bodies and political campaigns, Nigeria’s total marketing and communication spending including major brand expenditures is valued in billions of naira annually.
Let’s look at some figures available to us for just 2023:
- Nigerian Breweries Plc: Approximately spent N51.32 billion.
- MTN Nigeria media expenditure: N45.13 billion
- First Bank of Nigeria Holdings N32.33 billion
- Fidelity Bank N22.82 billion
- Guinness Nigeria Plc N20.62 billion
- Access Bank N19.80 billion
- United Bank for Africa N18.86 billion
- International Breweries Plc N14.82 billion
- Nestle Nigeria N14.35 billion
- Zenith Bank N11.45 billion
- Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc(GTCO) N8.76 billion
These are colossal figures, representing overall marketing and advertising spending, with media campaigns forming the largest and most visible chunk.
Now, here’s the critical point; a significant volume of this money, generated right here in Nigeria, is not being spent on the television stations in Nigeria, instead, it’s channeled into foreign platforms,
From data available, some of the major advertisers spent less than 30 per cent of their annual budget on Nigerian-owned channels and 70 per cent on Cable channels. They effectively take money out of our economy and contribute it to the economy of other countries, thereby creating a form of indirect inflation.
The actions of some of these major advertisers contributed to why our local media houses are on the brink. It’s a painful reality.
Why are we seemingly blind to the fact that we have no other country but Nigeria? Why can’t we prioritise Nigeria in all we do?
The previous administration under President Muhammadu Buhari took a commendable step by insisting on local production of commercial materials. But we must go further. For the sake of our struggling media industry, and for the economic development of our nation. We need a bold intervention.
I urge the relevant authorities to consider and implement legislation mandating that at least 80 per cent of media expenditure from companies operating in Nigeria be spent on Nigerian-owned media houses.
With such a policy, our media industry would experience massive growth, create jobs, discover local talent, local contents and contribute significantly to Nigeria’s economic development.
It’s time to truly unlock the full potential of our media to build the Nigeria we all desire.
Osamengbe David, is a Journalist and a Media Consultant based in Lagos
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