Recognising the Nexus Between the Entertainment Industry and Nigeria’s Economic Growth

2.1 Entertainment, the creative world and economy

In Africa, it has been discovered that the future of the emerging idea of the creative economy is not the result of choices among alternative paths in the present; instead, it is a place that is created – created in the mind and will of contemporary realities; created within the text of cultural and historical activities of given societies. Because the African man is a naturally creative being, the creative world might not look much different from what came before his awareness of the creative industry because it comes as part of a natural development to him. However, as with ‘the skateboarders who took the forest vegetation into the township, took the city’s architecture, and saw the shapes of the potential for speed and style, creativity is about repurposing, subverting, and improving what is already there. Even now, those who invented the term ‘‘creative industries’’ review its importance and usefulness in developing worlds such as Africa while reviewing boundaries and inroads; thus, the creative world is doing what it likes with the idea because of its spontaneity in the creative development process’ [2]. This implies that the African man is an intrinsic part of the creative process in society. This general introduction outlines how creative industries came about through the process of colonialism and global development while recognizing the differences in the economic growth of one nation to another, including changes in national and international economic patterns and enhancing development in culture and communication of any given African nation. African countries became more aware of the natural creative gifts which they have long taken for granted. Thus, ‘‘Creative industries’’ suggest a new organizing principle to fit a reorganised world, where new meanings are given to things old and almost discarded, an opportunity is located in unusual spaces: in knowledge, ideas, and relationships; and fresh issues of discussions arise in the areas of cultural importance and intercultural relationships in both local and global communities—and also allowing African countries to log in into new classification, the new significance of their creative essence into the new global world while carrying along its natural creative spirit. The African had to learn that to fit in within the new world creative industry, to learn about new policies that seek to expand and mobilise creative display, a new awareness of how selection, sanction and control can inhibit as well as support the business of creativity. In other words, it is as much about the creative conditions and spaces where creative participation can occur as it is about the products themselves. As succinctly put by Ellie Rennie:

It is also an acknowledgement that creativity is not just for the talented few, but a dynamic being picked up and pursued by people and groups in a range of new contexts that would give new meanings to cultural symbols and creative celebrative events which were because of the influx of western civilisation were taken for granted. So, although ‘creative industries’ deal with the vast, prevailing ramifications of a global economy, it is also an idea that works from the ground up [2].

In agreement with Renni, it must be noted that because of the hegemonic relationship occasioned by colonialism where there was an erosion of the original culture of the people and an imposed superior European culture, the culture of the African people especially in the area of entertainment were affected positively as they were able to develop a new consciousness to fit in with other continents.

John Hawkin also states that a creative man is someone who sees the upside in everything; to him, it is a quality of creative people to want to change things, to make something better. The African countries have also realised this and have tried to embraced this in order to be part of the progressive process. He maintains that in his current role as a government adviser on education, he is often battling with people who think only about the downside. It is a clash of opposites [3]. It is important to note that in line with Hawkins observation above, African countries like Nigeria are gradually finding out that globally, the Creative Industry is becoming a significant market because it develops the culture of the people, it creates oneness of language, artistic entrepreneurship, celebrates the socio-political sensibilities and artistic expressions worldwide, and helps to generate income for countries, so African countries have had to embrace it.

4.1 Recognising the nexus between the entertainment industry and economic growth

Entertainment industries around the world have always been economic powerhouses, as income generated have contributed to growth, employment, economic and social development. According to Harold L. Vogel on entertainment, “Each year, Americans cumulatively spend at least 175 billion hours and more than \$350 billion on legal forms of entertainment. And Globally, total annual spending is approaching one trillion dollars” [5]. This is why developed countries have always taken advantaged of enhancing the entertainment sectors in their countries through financial votes and fundings. Why then is the entertainment industry such a new powerful force that it has taken the attention of economic growth of developing countries? The answer is simple, it is a money-making venture alluded to by Allwell Okechukwu Nwankwo as capable of revamping the dwindling economic revenue of a country like Nigeria. A country in dare need of diversification income generating alternatives [6]. Citing the National Bureau of Statistics (2016), Allwell also affirms the creative industry in Nigeria contributed about N5 trillion (US\$16.4 Billion) – or 5.3% [6] to the Nigerian GDP in 2015. Using this as a template, in a country that has been known to be a pacesetter within Africa, one is tempted to allude that such economic gains is possible for countries around Nigeria, thus, allowing other developing countries to take part in strict economic growth and serve as avenue for revenue generation. This is why there is a need to re-echo the usefulness of creativity and economics. Hawkins is so apt when he says, “Creativity is not new and neither is economics, but what is new is the nature and extent of the relationship between them, and how they combine to create extraordinary value and wealth” [7]. It is sad to note that most African countries have not realised this relationship that creativity can be used to generate economic growth for example, it was conspicuously missing from the “inclusiveness agenda’ of Nigeria’s 2020 Budget. So, while the Nigerian government was comfortable making provisions for other aspects of the Nigerian economy, nothing was said about the creative industry. Quoting this from a government press statement, we observed that in furtherance of Nigeria’s inclusiveness agenda, the sum of N420 billion had been provided to sustain the Social Investment Programme; N20 billion has also been set aside for the Family Homes Fund (our Social Housing Programme); National Social Register was expanded to include an additional one million Nigerians following the onset of COVID 19 pandemic, and recently, the N75 billion Survival Fund Programme to support and protect businesses from potential vulnerabilities was introduced. Furthermore, the Central Bank of Nigeria is reducing the interest rate on its intervention facilities from 9% to 5% with: a 1-year moratorium till 31st March 2021 to provide concessional lending of N100 billion to households and small businesses, N100 billion to the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry and N1 trillion to large agricultural and manufacturing businesses. The statement ended with: ‘We urge Nigerian businesses and individuals to make the most of these concessional credit facilities and other such opportunities [3].

This means that Nigeria is comfortable with the dependence on revenue generation from oil alone and is not interested in diversifying her revenue generation base for now even when Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism speaks of the determination of the Nigerian government to invest in the tourism market. This is sad because Nigeria must be aware of the entertainment and creative industry’s new power. John Hawkins, in his book, The Creative Economy: How People Make Money from Ideas noted that: worldwide, the creative economy was worth about \$2,706 billion in 2005 and is growing at 6 per cent a year. According to the World Bank, the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2005 was \$44,385 billion, and the Creative Economy represents 6.1 per cent of the global economy [3]. The Creative industry as a Creative economy is a business that turns entertainment into a money-making scheme, which is constantly growing and subject to change in or by consumer tastes, technology, competition and market opportunities. To John Hawkins, the growth of this creative economy is likely to outgrow all other economic arenas. The US Patent Office says, ‘Trade in creative content will provide the economic basis to grow the global information infrastructure While the European Commission says, ‘Content will drive the new technologies’ [6]. These statements are too modest. Creative products are the basis of information, new technologies, and the entire modern economy, from software to shoes. African countries must learn that this is a new reality. From a glance at part of the Nigerian budget referred to above, it is apparent for now that Nigeria is not interested in:

a) Being part of the global building of any major form of technological capacity.

b) Helping to develop the Nigerian youths who are talented, smart and creative.

c) That the leadership of a developing country must not lack the intellectual fortitude of attempting to understand the new mechanism of a country enriching its economic growth.

d) That the new power of the domineering economy is the ownership of the future. This is how the new world thinks, which will make the country better placed in developing the massive technological capabilities that the new world needs.

Interestingly and sadly, these are the same observations for most African countries, except for Kenya, Zambia, Ethiopia, Ghana and South Africa, who have continued to embrace the new reality and have benefitted by embracing the growth of the economy of a nation through the creative industry.

Back to Nigeria, one is forced to ask, what then are the usefulness and gains of the many Federal government projects such as; the launching and review of the 1988 Cultural Policy? What was the reason for the 2005 “Face of Africa Project?” What were the importance and significance of the NEEDS-1 and NEEDS -2 Projects of 2008-2011 [8], which promised Nigerians, Economic empowerment and development strategies that would create Prosperity through growth’? And what were the lavish conference meetings in search of visions 2010, 2020 and presently 2050 about? Sadly, it is becoming imminent that Nigeria may remain a dependent consumer nation with all its human numbers, and natural mineral resources, despite its claim to be the ‘giant of Africa’. It remains important to note that Nigeria, as noted in its 2010 Report of the Vision 2010 Committee that the country “has lessons to learn from the experiences of other nations, especially those with similar history, geographic and cultural diversities and attributes or resources endowment [9]. Such countries include China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and South Korea. The lessons to be learnt from the experiences of these countries is that countries and the consistent economic bearing of a nation can achieve success even with resource limitations. It is clear that Nigeria has not learnt from its observations above.

4.1.1 Socio-political reality

One must note that the cultural history of Nigeria, like most African countries, has been one forced occupation by the colonial masters, the struggle for independence and post-colonial search for new meanings of survival with the challenges of modernity; with parameters that are set, ironically, by the past western colonial powers. Oil became a temporary solution for meeting up with the challenges of modernity. Gradually, the lack of good leadership, mismanagement of revenue from the oil industry, the uprising of the owners of the oil space, and the religious uprisings, the reality is that Nigeria, once regarded as the “the giant of Africa”, continues to fail in its leadership role in the African continent. As oil diminishes and the world is searching for alternatives for survival after oil, it is only reasonable that Nigeria must turn to other economic alternatives. The creative industry can be said to be her new reality. In 1960, when Nigeria became independent, the federal and regional governments’ total revenue amounted to no more than £143 million. Twenty years later, the expectation is that by 1981 the federal government will derive, from oil alone, a revenue put at some N21 billion, while federal government spending covering the last nine months of 1980 was put at some N7 billion [10].

Nigeria as an independent country had great hopes, but the following significant happenings blurred whatever path of progress it would have had for the following reasons:

a) the amalgamation of the different tribes in 1959 forced culturally independent and significantly varied people with different languages, sensitivities, religious beliefs, and histories to live together as a country. It was not the best way to start a country with no common cultural and historical semblances.

b) After the independence in 1960, the differences became more pronounced.

By 2020, at 60, Nigeria’s budget is N10.33 trillion [11], and on paper, Nigeria is the largest country in Africa; when one considers the 200 million people and large landmass, it appears that political leadership, mis management of its common prosperity, corruption, socio-political and religious uprisings, in security, poor educational and health facilities have made Nigeria less of the most developed emerging country in Africa. Scientific development globally also questioned the place of nature and existence. It pushed the barriers of acceptance of faith and fate and forced developing African countries to improve on their health needs and standards of living. These increased the need to seek for other means of funding. Two major reasons account for the realisation to diversify areas of economic growth for emerging African countries. For countries like Nigeria, oil diminishes, it runs rich, but it dries up, and the once prosperous country becomes poor again; there was also the belief of African leaders that since creativity is inborn and it is a natural gift of nature, there was no need to see it in serious light. Interestingly, these same African leaders enjoy the products of creativity in the form of entertainment from developed countries.

So why is Nigeria as a nation not exploring this avenue to diversify its economic base?

4.2 Final thoughts

So many questions come to mind as we reflect on entertainment and economic development. Can one say that this is the end of art or entertainment as we know it now or as we will know it in the future? Has modernity and its sometimes-hectic challenges drained the aesthetic element of the traditional African form of entertainment? And is the new digital form of entertainment, even as transient as it may be, a permanent process of entertainment? Will it pass as suddenly as it started, like the gradual diminishing flow of oil? Cultural history has taught us that if one phase of human value and existence passes, another phase takes over. This is development and growth, and it shows how man, nature, and humanity change or affect the world. Man is not static, life is not static, the future is now, and man lives it as he finds it. This is the age of digital technology – this is now. This also explains the new global shift in human desires, feelings and nature. And if the world is shifting, why can't Nigeria and her leaders shift with it? Could this be why after allowing the magnificent edifice, the Nigerian National Theatre which was used to host the world during the 2nd Black African Festival for Arts and Culture (FESTAC’77) rot because of its uncaring attitude towards any thing artistic by subsequent governments, is now being finally revamped by the consortium of Banks under the auspices of the Federal Government which had once put it up for sale. So whether it is a climate of business change or digital technological change, most African countries like Nigeria must be prepared to change and diversify their revenue-generating scope because the only thing permanent in the new creative world is change, adaptation which is ever-revolving around ideas of the fundamentals economic needs. More importantly, is that Digital technology, a core instrument of growth for the creative industry has come to stay for the following reasons:

a) Its power to capture both the past, present and future of human development,

b) Its ability to connect the world into a global whole quicker and faster,

c) Its ability to inspire new content for making the world a better place, and,

d) It has the power to generate money, the type which is dearly needed by African countries with their large population and a large segment of content consumers that would generate funds needed for economic growth.

This is why the impact of digital technology on the creative industries through the creation of a creative economy as viable entertainment industry for revenue generation cannot be overlooked but must be supremely embraced by emerging countries like Nigeria. Adaptation to the ‘new normal’ and a deep sense of optimism that things will be better are the new world order’s new keywords. How well African countries, Nigeria inclusive, will survive depend on how well they are ready to relearn and adapt to this ‘new normal’. After all, in the wise words of Anita Roddick in her article Capital On My Mind, in present times, “it seems reasonable to treat creativity as a capital asset” [12]. African countries must note this advice.

It must be noted that the significant difference between entertainment and culture is that culture is the endowed based content of the totality of human existence. At the same time, the entertainment industry is the art of turning culture into an instrument of revenue generation and economic enhancement for countries.

The year 2020 has been a year of “change”; this change has led to the gradual deconstruction of all aspects of the World as we knew it. It has touched on virtually everything – entertainment, the creative industries and everything associated with it. The truth is, our youths, talented and creative in so many ways, need to be positively engaged, and the entertainment or creative world seems to hold the key to such positive engagement. Hollywood famous actor Harrison Ford puts this succinctly when he states that: “There is a new force of nature at hand, stirring all over the world. They are the young people whom, frankly, we have failed. Who are angry, who are organised, and who are capable of making a difference. They are an amoral army, and the most important thing we can do for them is to get out of their way” [13]. But, if we cannot get out of their way and let them be that force, then we can at least plan for them by preparing and equipping them for the challenges of the future. Then and only then can they look back at this generation with some sort of appreciation and say we did well. If we do not do that, we might prepare ourselves for constant unrest and episodes similar to the #ENDSARS movement of 2020. African countries, Nigeria inclusive, must learn to move with the tide to absorb the changes, at least the positive ones in terms of technological advancement and the digital revolution that is fast changing the face and pace of entertainment and indeed the whole gamut of the creative industries to enable them to benefit maximally from these changes. The entertainment industry in its present state, as occasioned by the new wave of technology, is a ‘cash cow’ that needs to be milked by emerging countries like Nigeria to boost its economic base. The economic benefits for the nation far outweigh whatever negative side there is to it.

4.3 Recommendations

In order to recognise the nexus between entertainment and economic growth, the following recommendations are proffered:

1. Government must be sincere in its decision to diversify its economic growth. It must recognise the importance of entertainment to the cultural history of its people and be prepared to take on the new challenges of using entertainment not just as a way of providing jobs for the youths but as a means of empowering the youths for a new future. To this effect, it must be prepared to properly train the youths who will drive this new form of entertainment and search for an economical drive by setting up an institute for entertainment. The youths must be adequately trained in the format, formatting, writing of new entertainment content, framing such content within the new media and technological know-how, on content creation and finding appropriate outlets for the content providers to get the content to the new consumers.
2. The government must recognise that some of the Ministry of Information and Culture and Tourism parastatals are no longer relevant to the new trend in entertainment and information technology. The new changes must be adhered to if the new entertainment content serves as a serious alternative for the country’s economic growth. Therefore, there might be the need to streamline them and their functions to be made more functional within the new digital space and contribute effectively to Nigeria's economic growth.
3. Recognise the need for a new parastatal involved in training entertainers on the new modes of entertainment, styles, formats and distribution processes. The universities led by the National University Commission (NUC) can also help include the new development into the theatre arts curriculum, performance and film studies with the appropriate knowledge and technical know-how on preparing content for the new forms of the entertainment industry. The parastatal, when set up, will produce Internet entrepreneurs, who will be self-made managers who epitomise the ‘artist-as-entrepreneur’ phenomenon who work alone, armed with a telephone, iPad, an android or laptop. When set up, this parastatal will also enable the correct infrastructure for content quality, sustainability of the content and content providers, enabling connection with international bodies like amazon, NETFLIX, Apple TV, twitter, Instagram, etc. YouTube and other social media networks.
4. Review the intellectual property laws that include new aspects of the digital performances, entertainment rules, and copyright laws, including new technical development of ownership rights and revenue generation rights. This will help Nigeria achieve greater international visibility among other countries and prepare her for the challenges of the ever-changing modernity of the digital age.
5. The government must facilitate the establishment of a cultural data mapping process, which will help identify different cultural data sets of entertainment and creative industries in different Nigerian communities. The process will help arrange and map such data sets into coordinated cultural mapping projects, which will further help creative industries assist youth development in businesses and communities. There is no doubt that Nigeria can benefit from such coordination of and mapping of the cultural heritage strengths of different Nigerian tribes and communities.
6. Lastly, it would be appropriate to have a financial institution responsible for the sourcing, management and provision of funds for the entertainment sector of the Nigerian economy. Having such a bank may allow this sector develop quasi-autonomously without much reliance and interference from the government. The British Council office in Nigeria and The Society for Nigerian Theatre Artists SONTA have started deliberations on mapping Nigeria’s creative heritage. But Nigeria must take a leadership role through its department of Culture and lead the initiative which will benefit Nigerian creative industry and also help encourage the economic growth of Nigeria.