Memories, creative industries and national transformation (VI)

Take for instance the film industry. There must be some form of synergy between what the producers are doing and national interest. However, this can only happen if the government has put in place a favourable policy that will see the producers and stakeholders keying-in into what government wants. This is the more reason why […]

Take for instance the film industry. There must be some form of synergy between what the producers are doing and national interest. However, this can only happen if the government has put in place a favourable policy that will see the producers and stakeholders keying-in into what government wants. This is the more reason why the recent approval of some funds to be accessed by the film industry by the President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, should be commended. Even at that, it should not stop at the level of just approving funds (which some people may still hijack anyway), it should extend to well- coordinated policy statements that will convince every stakeholder of the sincerity of the government. It is believed that when the right policy is in place, the country will benefit immensely from the cultural industries.  This is the first challenge that must be tackled.
Lack of political will to execute the policies in place – The next challenge is for the government to have the political will to implement articulated policies. It is a truism that one of the banes of our development is lack of political will to implement some of the good policies that have been put in place, particularly when they affect the continued designs of the power-that-be. Thus, for us to succeed, when the right policies are put in place, the state must muster the appropriate political will to execute them. 
There is also the dangerous tendency of overlooking or underplaying the abundant potentials that the cultural industries carry. For many years, stakeholders, including the Federal government, have been singing about how much a proper organisation of the Tourism industry, one of the elements of the cultural industries, could fetch the country. Yet, in spite of numerous efforts, including the approval of the Tourism Master Plan it remains at the level of potential level. The question then is why is this so? The answer is simple, more often than not, we do not mean what we preach, policies are not backed by implementation. This presupposes that whoever is going to be in charge of the cultural industries must first be convinced, beyond reasonable doubt (as the lawyers would say) before venturing into harnessing the potentials. There are so many aspects of the industries that are begging to be tapped and unless we properly identify those areas, the tendency to underplay their potentials will continue, to the nation’s peril. 
The unwillingness of the private sector, particularly the business and banking sector, to invest in the areas – to complete the cycle of underplaying potentials – is the curious unwillingness of the private sector, particularly the banking sector, to put enough investment in the cultural industries. It may be argued, as some are wont to do, that the private sector is principally capitalist in nature and is therefore concerned only about profit. However, this argument may not suffice because there are enough reasons to convince anyone that there is profit in venturing into the cultural industries. Some of the music and sports promoters have proved this appreciably. Unfortunately, the banking sector seems to remain very conservative regarding to what constitutes the “traditional” businesses, thereby making it difficult for them to venture into the cultural industrial domain. Investment in this area is both marginal and grossly inadequate. What this means is that the pressure on the society is inadvertently caused, through collusion, by the investors. If we must generate the kind of revenue and employment that can keep our economy buoyant, the time is now for us to start looking into these areas and committing enough investment into it.
Policy Recommendations
To tackle the above challenges and to bring the best out of the cultural industries for the economic transformation of Nigeria, the following policy focus are suggested:
First, the fight against piracy should be intensified There is an on-going war against piracy, thus, the government and all stakeholders must join hands to win this war. Piracy and infringement of copyrights are crimes that are seriously impacting negatively on the performance of the cultural industries. Tackling it, head-long, is one of the most important strategies to get the industries going. However, government should articulate a well-defined, focused policy on this. When this is done, the industries will attract more people and will engender competition. This will, in turn, increase their contributions both economically and employment-wise to the sustainable development of the country.   The effort of the Copyright Commission in this direction is apt, if inadequate.
Secondly, there is need  for increased funding for education. It is common knowledge that the educational system is in a state of sorry decline presently. This is largely due to poor funding. This is affecting many sectors, including the development of the cultural industries, which is predicated on the quality of skills and equipment available. For the products of the culture industries to compete favourably in the national and international arena, the educational system must not only be refocused, it must be properly funded. When this is done, it will have ripple effect on the whole industries. The era of paying lip service to education or people and lamenting that the Nigerian educational system has collapsed must be over. We should start hearing about concrete steps being taken, starting with funding. It should be noted that the idea of divesting from education cannot do the country any yeoman service, particularly when adequate alternative source of funding have not been provided. Thus, there must be a policy that will guarantee the consistent increase of funding for education until the recommended 26% of the budget for education by UNESCO is reached.
Thirdly, soft loans must be provided for the cultural industries. Nigeria should enter the era of granting soft loans to facilitate production in the cultural industries. This should not be limited to the film industry alone. It should be extended to other sectors of the cultural industries. What most areas of the industry, like traditional crafts, need modest access to soft loans. When this is done, we shall be on our way to turning around the economic fortunes of the country for the better.
Next is the issue of security guaranty. In order to guarantee adequate participation and improvement in the level of concentration, and by implication, creativity in the cultural industries, security of life, property and environment must be guaranteed. The government must see this as part of creating a conducive atmosphere for business to thrive. For instance, without adequate security, the tourism industry cannot flourish, the cinema cannot survive, sports cannot progress, arts and exhibition cannot move on. The theatres will maintain a ghost-line existence. Thus, any strategy that does not include guaranteeing the security of lives and property cannot succeed. A nation endangered by crime-wave, kidnapping, armed-robbery, insurgency and terrorism cannot be a tourist destination.