FG’s Support For Creative Industry Paying Off – Minister

The increased attention and support being given the Creative Industry
by the Buhari Administration has started yielding fruits, the Minister
of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said.

Speaking at the premiere of the movie ”Wedding Party 2” in Lagos on
Sunday, the Minister listed the pioneer status granted to the
Industry, the stepped-up anti-piracy campaign and the decision to seek
stimulus capital for the Industry from the Central Bank of Nigeria
(CBN) as some of the positive results.

He recalled that shortly after the Creative Industry Financing
Conference in Lagos earlier in the year, he led a delegation of the
film industry stakeholders to the Inspector General of Police, which
resulted in the formation of anti-piracy units in all the 36 states of
the federation

”The subsequent extensive piracy raids have now resulted in the
confiscation of pirated films worth hundreds of
millions of Naira. In fact, criminal prosecutions of culprits have now
started,” Alhaji Mohammed said.

He also recalled how, shortly after the Conference, the federal
government granted pioneer status to the Creative
Industry to reduce financial burdens on new investments and encourage
both foreign and local investments into
the film industry.

The Minister congratulated Ms. Mo Abudu and all those involved in the
production of ”Wedding Party 2”, saying with the blockbusters being
churned out by Nigerian film producers, ”we can formally announce to
the world that a true
film industry has arrived in our Nollywood.”

Meanwhile, Alhaji Mohammed has declared the arrival of a new dawn in
the nation’s Creative Industry

”I am totally encouraged that Nigeria is indeed on track with all the
capabilities to diversify our economy in order to create jobs and
boost our Gross Domestic Product. It’s great to note that the Creative
sector is taking the lead to achieve this,” he said at the opening of
the musical ”Fela and the Kalakuta Queens” at Terra Kulture, also in
Lagos on Sunday.

He said the vibrancy in the sector is largely due to the collaborative
efforts of the Public and Private sectors, which the likes of Ms.
Bolanle Austen Peters, founder of Terra Kulture, have leveraged with
impressive results

The Minister congratulated Ms. Austen Peters, her management team and
all the creative talent involved in the making
”Fela and the Kalakuta Queens”, saying: ”This production will no
doubt take us to another level in our achievements and I want to
assure you that this government is with the Creative sector all the
way.”