Entertainment infrastructure deficit offers N10bn investment opportunity

It was commendable that the Nigerian creative industry, particularly the entertainment sector, was resilient during recession with 11 percent growth, a little below the 15.7 percent growth and US$3.8 billion contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) it recorded in 2015.

 The sector, which contributes over US$4 billion annually to the economy, has the capacity to double its revenue generation and may become the ‘new oil’ in Nigeria if such feat is sustained.

However, the Nigerian entertainment industry is faced with infrastructure deficit that still limits its capacity and may pose serious challenge to the realization of its US$8.1 billion revenue projection by 2020.

At present, over 40 percent of Nigerian music videos are shot in South Africa, about 30 percent in the UK and the US, while less than 30 percent are shot in Nigeria.  The top five grossing Nollywood movies in 2017 were shot in locations outside Nigeria with a few scenes from Nigeria, while many writers are publishing their books overseas.

The fact that over half of Nigerian movie and music content are produced abroad underpins the impact of the entertainment infrastructure deficit. The deficit, according to Martins Oluko, an economist and entrepreneur, presents an over N10 billion investment opportunity across the country, from world class music/recording studios, performance theatres, cinemas, movie production, publishing houses, reality TV show outfits, among others.

It would be recalled that at the Creative Industry Summit in Lagos, last year, Lai Mohammed,  Minister of Information and Culture, who was dissatisfied with the ugly trend of shooting movies and music overseas asked, “What does it take to have shot-in-Nigeria content”?

The minister, who then attempted to ban entertainment content produced overseas, noted that the country loses a lot in terms of capital flight, taxes to hosting countries, skills transfer and even national pride.

But organisers and producers of these content keep citing poor or lack of supporting infrastructure as an excuse. While the organisers of Big Brother Naija reality TV show smiled to the bank at the end of the 2018 edition of the show, Tunji Alatise, founder, Muvi, an entertainment company, who was invited to one of the evictions of the show, refused to travel to South Africa for the show because of his anger that for the second time, the Nigerian content show was still being produced in South Africa for the Nigerian audience.

“The Nigerian organisers spent over N200 million hosting that show in South Africa, paying necessary taxes, hotel accommodation, flights, engaging the locals, among others. That is huge capital flight because that money can get a standard movie studio. Forget about the excuse of infrastructure they keeping giving, they can get the facilities and monetise it for other users”, Alatise said.

Sam Onyemelukwe, managing director, Vernatol Partners, which run the brand, Trace EMC, in Nigeria, thinks investors should see a business gap that needs to be filled. For him, the situation provides investment opportunities in the entertainment industry, especially provision of the needed infrastructure here, and business model that would encourage patronage of such infrastructure by Nigerian content creators.

Adopting business models that would encourage return on investment as Onyemelukwe rightly pointed out, is necessary, as such models have seen over N10 billion investments in the cinema business across the country by the likes of Silverbird Cinemas, The Filmhouse Cinemas, Genesis Deluxe Cinema, among others.

However, it is time for government to truly provide a friendly environment, incentives and legislations that will encourage more investments in the entertainment industry and not the usual lip service. The government can also woo other content creators from outside the country to visit and shot their contents in the country.

It can interface further between Nigerian content creators and the Bank of Industry, Nexim Bank, International Finance Corporation, among other credible financial lenders for credit facilities to get the needed infrastructure on board. Of course, such efforts will aid in the provision of the incentive that will lead to the creation of world-class studios and locations for the perfectly shot made-in-Nigeria movie or music video. Tinapa had such a dream but it died due poor support from the Federal Government. Perhaps, this is the time to reawaken the Tinapa dream, Jos Film Village project, and getting a central location for Nollywood.