Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has stated that the government is shifting focus to the creative industry because it no longer has trust in crude oil.
In a statement issued by Segun Adeyemi, his media aide, on Monday, the minister said the government had promised to invest in the necessary infrastructure to ensure the growth of the movie industry, globally know as Nollywood.
Mohammed made this statement during a film festival in Lagos on Sunday.
According to him, “When we trusted in the almighty oil, we built refineries, pipelines, petrol marketing companies, petrol stations etc. Since we are now rightly shifting our focus to this sector, we must now make the necessary investments in the infrastructure that will grow the film industry.
“The film industry has proven itself to be not just a great employer of labour, especially young people, but also potentially a very high foreign exchange earner because of its international appeal and demand.
“We need professional studio facilities in every state of the country. You should also not be providing your own power, borrowing at 30%, travelling abroad to do post-production etc.
“Mr President has publicly put his weight behind the creative industry and has promised to do everything that will make it possible for us to transit from a creative industry to a creative economy. To this end we are already in talks with state governments and investors to build studio facilities that will equal those in Mexico, India, the U.S etc.
This will make film making easier and increase the quality of films.”
The minister added that the ongoing transition from analogue to digital broadcasting would also help provide a major customer base for Nigerian films.