By ABIOLA ODUTOLA
The Nigerian entertainment industry has been projected to rise from $3.8 billion, as at end of 2018, to $7.6 billion by the end of 2022.
According to a recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers Nigeria, the industry’s revenue, which witnessed a 25.5 per cent growth, when it closed at $3.8 billion, is expected to increase by 100 per cent by the end of 2019.
The report also disclosed that internet access revenue would account for over 70 per cent of the projected growth.
Leader, Entertainment and Media, PwC, Mr. Vicki Myburgh, explains that it is obvious that Africa is in a rapidly evolving entertainment and media ecosystem and Nigeria plays a major role in the development.
He says, “Business models are being reinvented so all players can tap into new revenue streams, by, for example, targeting fans and connecting more effectively with customers to develop a membership mind-set.
“The pace of change witnessed in the industry is not going to let up anytime soon, as new and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and augmented reality will continue to redefine the battleground. In an era when faith in many industries is at historically low ebb, the entertainment industry in Nigeria is where to stay and will be mind-blowing in three years.”
The industry, which historically is more than 30 years now, employs over three million Nigerians (both direct and indirect employment) and has weathered the storm right from the days of popular thespians, including the likes of Duro Ladipo, Eddie Ugbomah, Ola Balogun, Hubert Ogunde and many others, when films were made on celluloid, up to the present age of digital revolution.
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Though the industry is the third biggest after America’s Hollywood and India’s Bollywood, some industry players admit that the quality of most of the movies is still a distance from those of the latter. They enthuse that the movies tell the African stories and entertained Africans and black people around the world.
A veteran actor, Olu Jacobs, explains that Nollywood is watched in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean with increase in international co-productions and it is now a subject of intellectual discourse and doctoral theses in some of the best institutions in the world.
Jacob says, “But we must never be shy of celebrating what we’ve got. The industry is like a growing baby and we are proud of it because we have all made Nollywood what it is today, to a large extent.”
In a paper entitled, “The Impact of Entertainment on the Nigerian Economy,” another popular actor, Richard Mofe-Damijo, highlights the impact of entertainment on Nigeria’s economy and its potentialities.
“What would Nigeria be like without entertainment? That question has been nipping at the back of my mind for quite some time now. If I were to talk about what entertainment has contributed to the total wellbeing of this great country, there will be no time left for any other matter in this event,” he says.
According to him, entertainment is a big business in Nigeria and has continued to expand while embracing new technologies.
Mofe-Damijo popularly called RMD says, “Nollywood, the film and video segment, is the clear leader. In the last couple of years, our music has taken the world by storm. Our art is making inroads into the global marketplace. Fashion has set its footstool on the global arena. Live theatre has come alive and the new media has continued to make these different aspects of entertainment available to the world in real time.
“In the past, Nigeria got 70 percent of her income from oil, but trust me, today, entertainment is the engine upon which a lot of things operate, even technology. It is driven mostly on the entertainment value that we can build around it.”
Speaking on their expectations from government, he explains that the government needs to realise that it owes all actors.
“You cannot subsidise agriculture and not subsidise culture, because, at the end of the day, it is what defines us. Government must make deliberate policies that will affect entertainment; we don’t want interventions but policies that are not dependent on any political party,” he adds.
He further notes that government does not need government to invest in the entertainment industry, stressing, “What we need is just for the government to play its part. Don’t give us 100 percent light, just give us for 12 hours in a day. If we do not continue to discuss entertainment the way agriculture and other things are discussed, my grandchildren will sit here discussing entertainment in growing the Nigerian economy.”
The Group Executive Director, Filmhouse Cinemas, Mr. Moses Babatope, also notes that Nigerian movies have topped the chart at the cinemas in the past seven weeks, inspite of the presence of foreign blockbusters.
The box office kings are Merry Men (N230 million), King of Boys (N100 million), The Ghost and the Tout (N80 million), Moms at War (N65 million) and Royal Hibiscus Hotel (N59 million).
Kenya
Kenya’s Entertainment and Media saw a 17 per cent year-on-year growth in 2017, again propelled by growth in the Internet sector. An 11.6 percent Compound Annual Growth will take the country to $2.9 billion in 2022, from $1.7 billion in 2017. Outside of the Internet space, TV and video revenue dwarfs the other segments.
Ghana
Ghana’s E&M industry has more than tripled in value since 2013. Total revenue reached $752 million in 2017. It is forecast to surpass $1 billion in 2019 and to total $1.5 billion in 2022, increasing at a 14.2 per cent CAGR. As with Nigeria and Kenya, Internet access spending accounts for much of this revenue and growth. Ghana is in a strong position for further E&M growth as revenue gains critical mass over the next five years.
Tanzania
Total E&M revenue in Tanzania stood at $496 million in 2017, having risen to 28.2 per cent year on year. Continued momentum at an 18.3 per cent CAGR will see revenue reach $1.2 billion in 2022, 2.3 times the size of the market in 2017. Tanzania’s E&M revenue make-up is ostensibly similar to that of Ghana, although here Internet revenue takes a slightly less dominant position.
The report further stated that among the countries considered, growth would be driven by Nigeria, adding $12.4 billion in revenue from 2017 to 2022, at a combined CAGR of 11.9 per
cent.
