NEMCEA: ‘A strategic media content event for global stakeholders to buy, sell, collaborate, exchange ideas’
By Godwin Okondo
THE Electronic Media Content Owners Association of Nigeria (EMCOAN) recently held its 3rd edition of Nigerian Electronic Media Content Exhibition and Awards (NEMCEA) on Wednesday, August 7-8, 2024 at Radisson Blu Hotel, Ikeja GRA, Lagos. It hosted a number of Nigerian media content creators and an opportunity for networking and discussions on issues relating to the creative media. The conference had as theme ‘Content Production and Emerging Technology: A Panacea for Growth in the Creative Economy’. It featured guests from the creative media space and other government bodies, who shared valuable insights into the challenges and triumphs facing content creators in Nigeria.
While receiving his guests, President of EMCOAN and Managing Director of Adnom Communications Ltd., Mr. Adeniji Omirin, “It is with great pride, joy and sense of belonging that I welcome you all to the opening ceremony of the third edition of the outstanding and biggest content market and exhibition in Nigeria. This event is proudly organized by the EMCOAN, the umbrella body of the television, radio and online content producers in Nigeria. Our members own many of the television and radio programmes in Nigeria and a significant percentage of the online contents.
“We also have a very large number of contents across paid TV platforms such as DSTV/GOTV, Startimes and terrestrial TV stations in Nigeria and across Africa. Our association is made up of industry veterans as well as associates members who are made up of young and upcoming content producers especially online content creators.
“Exhibition and display of content is a significant aspect of this event and it will run throughout the two-day activities. Thursday, 8th August 2024 which is the second day of this exhibition, will be the grand finale and awards ceremony. We are most grateful to our sponsors and Industry partners: Zee World, Radisson Blu Hotel, Creative Nigeria Summit(CNS), National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) and others who have stood by us over the years.”
“We thank Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON), FREE TV, as well as all our media partners, too numerous to mention. We also want to commend all the members of EMCOAN, and the young and upcoming content creators pushing the dreams of this industry beyond the borders of this nation. We say thank you.”
MD/CEO of Zee Media Services Ltd, Mrs. Anita Akpezi Agarry-Oke displaying her award tropy in he midts of other guests
“We are proud to say that having introduced the Associate Membership at the EMCOAN level some few years ago, an initiative to encourage and accommodate new content creators who are yet to register their own companies or are in the process of registering, that is, younger generations with contents on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and many more, we took a step further last year during the 2023 edition to unveil the NEMCEA Creative Academy.
“The idea is to target the mass communication/creative arts and students with other relevant discipline in tertiary institutions to learn the rudiment of the content production business even while in school and having a practical internship programme through our members’ production outfits. These are EMCOAN’s critical steps taken towards investing in the independent media production business and to secure the future of the business.”
Mohammed commend e EMCOAN for the initiative, saying, “This is the third in the series. My relationship with the association goes as far back as my time as the Minister of Information and Culture. Precisely on the 13th of June, I was in Gerson Chamber of Commerce, in Germany, and they have this programme annually titled, “Gerson Welcomes the World.” It’s a programme where the city of Gerson invites the entire world, and it’s a platform where you can market your country, and I was privileged to be at that programme, and incidentally, my address to that chamber of commerce was that there were available investment opportunities in the creative industry in Nigeria, and I believe that this is one area of our economy which is not being marketed enough.
“We are a creative people by nature, and when I talk about the creative industry, in terms of music, fashion, advertising, tourism, events, hospitality, radio and the likes, and the truth of the matter is that this industry is not just the fastest running industry in Nigeria, but it’s the second largest, after agriculture.
“Before 2020, the impression we had when people talked about the creative industry in Nigeria, and people thought it was about music and film. Hardly did people talk about other aspects of the creative industry, but when the pandemic struck in 2019, we did a survey to show exactly how much the pandemic has affected the industry in Nigeria. If you recall, the most affected was the creative industry, because when movement is restricted and people cannot gather together, there can’t be films and concerts, and the result of this survey shocked me and actually repositioned in my mind, the real things about the creative industry in Nigeria.
“The first shocker is that contrary to the belief that film and music generate most revenue, I was shocked to realise that the film industry generated N140 billion in 2019; the music industry generated N300 billion and the shocker was that the hospitality, tourism and events generated N1.2 trillion. I was trying to digest that when I realised that fashion alone generated N2 trillion and beauty and healthcare generated N1.52 trillion. We are talking about content in the context of either radio or film or fashion; we are talking about a whole big market.
“The truth of the matter is that the major reason why the economic hardship is not being felt is because of this informal sector, despite all the hardship, because we are a creative people; we still continue to provide jobs in the sector. This industry continues to resonate, because the creative industry is Nigeria itself. You might be surprised the fashion industry generated so much money. It’s very simple. We are a celebratory nation, and we celebrate death, birth, anniversary, jobs, and you buy clothes and aso ebi. This is what keeps our economy going.
“Our wives don’t tie gele again; rather, people come from outside to tie it for them, and even make them up. It is a big industry and we must continue to support it. I am glad to be a part of this industry because it is a thriving and self-regenerating industry. What we used to wear 40 to 50 years ago is being recycled and it’s changing and coming back.”
The Project Director, NEMCEA 2024 and First Vice President, EMCOAN, Mr. Ugwu Chinedu, noted that Nigeria Media Content Exhibition and Awards (NEMCEA) was conceived and birthed in the year 2022 and has become one of the best things to happen to content producers in Nigeria. He said it’s a 3-pronged event where content creators and industry stakeholders converge to discuss, network and conduct business transactions, and thereafter relax in a convivial atmosphere to appreciate and reward deserving content producers during an award ceremony.
“NEMCEA has become a very important and strategic media content event as it brings together global stakeholders in the media industry within and outside Nigeria to buy, sell, collaborate, aggregate, and exchange ideas on media contents and also bring to the fore issues and perspectives bordering on the media industry particularly in Nigeria and across Africa as a whole,” he said. “Prior to the introduction of NEMCEA, there was no content market to cater for Nigeria’s ever-growing electronic media content. This 2024 edition would be a 2-day bumper package of conferences, media contents exhibitions and awards. Our speakers and panelists were carefully selected from diverse industry backgrounds to ensure a robust cross pollination of industry ideas.
“The creative industry is a very important sector of the Nigerian economy and it is said to have contributed about 2.54% of the Gross Domestic Product in the 2nd quarter of 2023, and it is projected to contribute as much as 10% in the nearest future, according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics. We are most grateful to the administration of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu for recognizing the importance of the Creative Industry in Nigeria by creating a ministry, ably led by Hajia Hannatu Musawa to oversee and harness the potential in the creative industry.
“Under the Ministry of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, the creative industry funding for content production would be made available to deserving content creators so as to encourage creativity and economic growth. In one of the conferences, Mr. Obi Asika a Director General in the ministry would be giving us more details on how to access this funding. We would also be discussing creative branded entertainment, audience measurement system technology and the growth of broadcast media In Nigeria, creative content production using artificial Intelligence as well as the place of cyber security in media content monitoring and safety. In a bid to sustain the growth in the industry, we will be having a session for the NEMCEA Creative Academy dedicated to upcoming and aspiring content creators and media enthusiasts.”
Some of the guests present included former Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, MD/CEO of Zee Media Services Ltd, Mrs. Anita Akpezi Agarry-Oke, Creative Director of Nollywood Film Factory, Mr. Obi Emelonye, actor, producer and MD of Golden Pyramid Productions, Chief Emeka Ossai, MD of Mediafuse Dentsu, Mrs. Marian Ogaziechi, Co-Founder, NIGPT & CEO of Finnova Corp., Mr. Julius Olaoluwa Oyekanmi, Creative Director of McAwal Concerns Productions, Mr. Awal Abdulfatai and General Manager of AfroKids TV, Gochi Amadi.
