Film industry in Nigeria should generate $73m annually- Reps Speaker

.Says sector ‘ll create more employment opportunities, raise GDP

JONAS EZIEKE, Abuja

The House of Representatives has said $73 million dollars is expected to be generated annually from the film industry in Nigeria

The House further said that the establishment of the National Institute of Film and Media Technology Ukawu Ebonyi State will create more employment opportunities for the teeming unemployed youths in Nigeria and raise the nation’s Gross Domestic Product GDP.

Speaker of the House Rt.Hon.Tajudeen Abbas made these known in an opening remark at a one day public hearing organized by the House Committee on National Orientation, Ethics and Values on Wednesday at the National Assembly.

Represented by the House Committee Chairman on Healthcare Services, Hon.Amos Magaji, the speaker said that $73 million is being expected to be generated annually from the film industry which is a fast growing industry that is capable of reinvigorating and stimulating the nation’s economy.

He said that the creative industry in Nigeria is the highest employer of labour and it contributes about 7 percent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product GDP annually.

He said that the demand for skilled professionals in Nollywood and the film industry had become more imperative adding that it had contributed 2.1 percent of the nation’s economic growth

He added that the establishment of National Institute of Film and Media Technology Ukawu will bring into being a federal institution that will incorporate artificial intelligence in the film industry for growth and national development.

Also speaking in a remark, Chairman of the House Committee, Hon.Steve Olusola Fatoba said that the House is ready and willing to provide technical support and assistance to the National Film and Media Technology Institute Ukawu in Ebonyi State if it is established.

He further said that the only existing national film institute located in Jos Plateau State is inadequate to cater for the needs of the film industry in Nigeria.

At the hearing, some other lawmakers and critical stakeholders, including the Nigeria Law Reform Commission, backed the need for a strong legal framework for the film industry in Nigeria.