In a bid to reduce the huge financial losses associated with piracy of movies and music in the Nigerian Creative Industry, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to develop accessible digital content in the country. This was disclosed by the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, at the Creative Nigeria Summit held in Lagos.
Emefiele said that creating digital payment options and contents would enable Nigerians have multiple digital channels to purchase movies and music.
“Despite our large population, the lack of widely accessible shopping platforms, smuggling of goods, piracy, as well as lack of digital payment options have limited the growth of the creative industries in Nigeria relative to countries such as South Africa and Kenya.
“Indeed, we read about how the income due to our young movie personnel and musicians are stolen through unpaid royalties. We intend to work with your cooperative associations to ensure that all revenues/royalties due our creative youths enter their bank accounts rather than being stolen.”
Emefiele noted that the Central Bank had approved the establishment of Payment Service Bank Licenses to telcos and fintechs which would increase the pace of achieving the accessibility of digital contents. He said having access to mobile financial services will enable Nigerians to purchase music and movies via bank accounts linked to their mobile phones easily.
The CBN Governor went on to assure Nigerians, saying that the CBN would do its best to ensure that entrepreneurs in the creative sector obtain their fair share of what is derived from their hard work.
In recent times, the CBN has given more prominence to the creative industry and has sought out ways to help the creatives in the industry thrive. Recall that the CBN planned to commence the development of a 40-acre Creative Industry Park around the National Theatre in Lagos as well as similar parks in Kano, Port Harcourt or Enugu.
The CBN also unveiled the Creative Industry Financing Initiative (CIFI) earlier in May this year which was to enable the creative sector get loans to support their businesses.