In a bid to catalyze investment in the broadcast and advertisement industries in Nigeria, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has inaugurated a task force for the implementation of an audience measurement system in the country.
During the inauguration on Tuesday in Abuja, the Minister said having an empirical audience measurement system in the country’s broadcast eco system was long overdue.
He said the present system has suffered underdevelopment because of the non-existence of such a platform.
”We are committed to delivering an empirical audience measure system that will catalyze investment in broadcast and advertising industries, ensure the success of the DSO project as well as fire the imagination and boost the morale of creatives.
”We are undaunted by the enormity of the challenges we face in this regard, because we have a bunch of committed, patriotic and
hardworking men and women to tackle the challenges headlong,” the Minister said while inaugurating the 15-member committee, which has Mr. Tolu Ogunkoya as Chairman.
He said the inauguration is the culmination of a series of events that included the setting up of the Task Team on Audience Measurement and the selection of First Media and Entertainment Integrated (Nigeria) Limited, a marketing research company based in Lagos, to deliver audience measurement services in Nigeria.
Broadcast Underdevelopment
Alhaji Mohammed said the absence of a scientific audience measurement system has resulted in under-development in the broadcast and advertising industries and stunted their growth.
”Nigeria’s broadcast advertising market is punching far below its
weight, especially when the country’s population is taken into
account. Despite having a population more than three times that of
South Africa, Nigeria’s television advertising market revenue in 2016
was US$309 million, compared to that of South Africa, which was US$1.3billion. Nigeria’s broadcast advertising market is also third in
Africa, behind that of South Africa and Kenya.
”The immediate challenge before us, therefore, is to bring the
under-performing Nigeria TV and radio advertising market to what it
should be – which is two or three times what it is now. If we do that,
it could result in additional US$400 million revenue or more in the industry in the next three years,” he said.
The Minister said a scientific audience measurement system is also
critical to the success of the DSO, adding:
”The existing model will never allow Nigeria’s Creative Industry to
reach its full potential. It stunts the quality of the content that can be created and also limits the capacity of television platforms to invest in dynamic contents that consumers will be attracted to.”
He charged the Task Force to identify best practice audience measurement system that will support the sustainable growth of the Nigerian Creative and Entertainment Industry; supervise the established framework for supporting the sustainability of the audience measurement system, independent of the Federal Government and recommend a payment and disbursement framework among the key stakeholders in the industry, that is; Broadcasting Organizations of Nigeria (BON), Media Independent Practitioners Association of Nigeria
(MIPAN) and Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN).
Alhaji Mohammed also challenged the Task Force to urgently grow the
Nigerian television advertisement market to two or three times its
current size.
Responding, the Task Force Chairman, Mr. Ogunkoya, promised that his
panel would take the charge by the Minister very seriously, adding:
”If we get this right, we would have done the industry and the nation
proud.”
Other members of the Task Force are Mr. Femi Adelusi, Mr. Steve
Babaeko, Mrs. Bunmi Adeniba, Mrs Jibe Ologe, Mr. Yinka Oduniyi, Mr Guy Murray Bruce, Ms Kadaria Ahmed, Mrs. Pauline Ehusani, Mrs.Ijedi Iyoha, Alhaji Garba Bello Kankarofi, Mrs. Sa’a Ibrahim, Mr. Mahmoud
Ali-Balogun, Mr. Obi Asika and Mr. Joe Mutah (Secretary)
Emmanuel Ukoh
