A cross-section of stakeholders in the creative industry on Sunday frowned upon drafting the Creative Industry Development Bill (CIDB) without their input.

They expressed their grievances during a consultative meeting of the creative industry stakeholders with Felix Alaita, senior special assistant to the president (Country Risk Assessment and Evaluation), the bill’s initiator.

This was held at the Terra Kulture, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The stakeholders said that though the bill’s content would spur growth in the industry, the stakeholders ought to be involved in each stage of the drafting process.

Israel Eboh, national president of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP), said it was disheartening to know that the CIDB was being drafted without proper consultations with the key stakeholders in the industry.

Mr Eboh noted that the stakeholders happened to know the sector’s challenges and what is required in advancing the industry and, as such, should be carried along.

He explained that too many components of the industry had not been captured in the bill. According to him, this can lead to lopsided development in the industry, which has accounted for the reason the industry has not grown as expected.

“We appreciate the bill, but the process is what is questioned. We believe that the MDAs and the relevant agencies that are already established by law operating within this field should be carried along,” said Mr Eboh. If these bodies and stakeholders do not key into the bill, there would be conflicting interest, and that is one of the problems the sector is currently confronted with.”

Jahman Anikulapo, a culture archivist, advised that the Nigerian cultural policies and endowment fund for the arts should be captured in the bill and put in proper perspective.

Similarly, Victor Okhai, national president of the Directors Guild of Nigeria, said, “The idea of the bill is good and well appreciated. Whatever that will take us to the next level is welcome. But if there is no inclusiveness, the bill will not see the light of the day, so I advise that you do things the right way to get the full support of the industry.”

Mr Alaita explained that the bill had been drafted five times and was going into the sixth draft when the stakeholders’ involvement was needed. He said the essence of the bill was to advance Nigeria’s creative industry, considering the numerous challenges hindering its growth over the years.

The presidential aide noted that the bill’s content made provisions for training, funding, skill upgrading and the ability to conduct research for every practitioner in the creative space.

He explained that the bill was an executive draft, and a commission would be established to interface with the stakeholders.

“We are looking at a broad framework without which you cannot achieve efficiency to grow. We want to create a framework to prevent you from being exploited because exploitative tendencies are building up outside our shores. We also want to look at how royalties are treated,” Mr Alaita explained. “We hope to explore advertising and architecture aspects of the creative space which have not been captured and we will engage to learn and build up knowledge for our collective benefit.” 

(NAN)