E-NIGERIA 2012 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

TOPIC:

THE ROLE OF MEDIA IN IT LOCAL CONTENT DEVELOPMENT, MARKETING AND WEALTH CREATION

PRESENTED BY:

DON PEDRO AGANBI

MANAGING CONSULTANT

TECH TV NIGERIA

DATE: NOVEMBER 21, 2012

BACKGROUND

The term local content has gained currency in recent times. In Nigeria, it first entered popular lexicon over two decade ago with the petrochemical industry where activists and indigenous suppliers in the sector begun agitating for a larger role in system. This invariably meant they wanted a big piece of the pie.

Today one can safely say that they have succeeded reasonably in their quest.  The Federal government through the Local Content Policy in 2006 changed the policy thrust of the nation's oil and gas industry through indigenous participation as against the previous domination by foreigners.

BACKGROUND CONT’D…

Local and multinational players in the sector see the birth of the policy as a proactive step to stimulate indigenous participation, build local capacities, increase the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and ultimately reposition the nation's ailing economy.

ICT, in contrast, is a relatively new sphere in this clime. Although we all agree that ICTs and particularly the Internet, are transforming all human activities as the dependence on information continues to grow. Clearly, local content in ICT is more basic.

BACKGROUND CONT’D…

ICTs have enabled various information or content to be placed over internet in order to share it all over the world, thus opening the doors for content globalisation. While citizens in more advanced economies increasingly upload content the same cannot be said for emerging economies.

The challenge therefore is how to improve local content creation, assess the role media can play in this regards and explore opportunities and prospect in local content creation.

WHAT WE’LL BE TALKING ABOUT…

Media Media (singular medium) are the storage and transmission

channels or tools used to store and deliver information or data. It is often referred to as synonymous with mass media or news media, but may refer to a single medium used to communicate any data for any purpose. (Dictionary.com website)

Examples include Books, Newspapers, Magazines, and Recordings, Radio, Movies, Television and The Internet.

WHAT WE’LL BE TALKING ABOUT…CONT’D

Local Content An expression and communication of a community’s locally

generated, owned and adapted knowledge and experience that is relevant to the community’s situation. (Khan, 2007)

Marketing According to the definition that was approved by the

American Marketing Association Board of Directors: Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for

creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. (Approved October 2007)

WHAT WE’LL BE TALKING ABOUT…CONT’D

Wealth Creation The act of making a country, group, or person richer and more

successful.

(macmillandictionary.com website)

Digitisation The process by which physical or manual records such as text,

images, video, and audio are converted into digital forms.

It offers the following benefits: Long term preservation of documents, orderly archiving of documents, easy and customised access to information, easy information dissemination through images & text, CD-ROMs, internet, intranets, and extranets.

LOCAL CONTENT IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE…

The overall objective of local content development is to promote knowledge creation, preservation, dissemination, and use of locally generated knowledge.

There is an urgent need to take a pragmatic step towards the generation, organization, and dissemination of our local content reflecting the values and experience of local communities. (UNESCO's Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, 2010).

Thankfully, key stakeholders in the nation’s ICT sector agree that for the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector to play a dominant role in Nigeria’s economic transformation there needs to be a substantive local content policy in the sector

REASONS FOR LACK OF LOCAL CONTENT…

According to Khan (2010) the reasons for lack of local content include:

Limited financial resources of developing countries for content production;

Inappropriate training opportunities for content creators; Lack of access to advanced technology (production units,

digital cameras, digital studios); Low motivation and commitment at the decision making level

to change the situation Market forces, which do not encourage diversity.

THE MEDIA …

Everyone here must have heard that the media basically performs three functions or roles, namely:

Information Education and Entertainment.

Clearly underlining these three basic roles of media is another role of persuasion, where media are seen as virile tools of applying persuasive efforts to influence people’s actions towards a particular direction

WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY…

These roles of media in national development lie in their capacity and capability to teach, manipulate, sensitize and mobilize people through information dissemination – (Ucheanya 2003, as cited by Chinenye Nwabueze).

The media also chart a course for the public in line with the agenda setting theory, thereby creating in the minds of the people, issues that should be viewed  as priority issues including development programmes and policies  - (Nwabueze, 2005).

WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY… CONT’D

The media leads to formation of attitude through establishing of values for the society or nation and thereby building a climate of change in the society or nation. According to Alade Odunewu as cited by Yakasai A.S. 1996, this involves the dissemination of news and information in response to a basic human need, which is the “right to know”.  

Indeed, the strong media effects paradigms likens the mass media to an irresistible hypodermic needle or a magic bullet (MacQuail, 1989; Lowery and Defleur, 1988)

WHAT IS REQUIRED THEREFORE IS…

Now that we know that the media indeed has a huge role to play in local content development, we need to fashion a clear-cut strategy to promote media involvement in local content creation.

Principally, we should have:

1. A clear ICT local content policy

2. The role of the media should be specified,

including:

a. Fixing a mandatory percentage of schedules for local programming (say 30 percent of airtime) on ALL radio/television stations.

WHAT IS REQUIRED THEREFORE IS…CONT’D

b. Airtime concession for programmes that promote

ICT adoption and use.

c.  Supporting creativity and innovation in local content production in radio, television and new media through subventions, access to affordable broadband (for New Media) and capacity building

3. A special fund for ICT local content development – e.g. Nigerian Trust Fund on ICT4D

4. Full implementation of the Freedom of Information

(FoI) Act

MARKETING …

When we talk about marketing in this space, we must take a cue from he audio-visual industry or if you like Nollywood.

The Nigerian movie industry, in all practical purpose and despite strong criticism, remain a pivotal example of how local content can become a viable industry employing thousands of Nigerians and promoting and (if you like) ‘de-promoting’ the country’s image.

Products of Nollywood are extremely popular across Africa particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where there are semblances of cultural identity.

MARKETING …CONT’D

How did Nollywood achieve this:

Originality Creativity Identification Accessibility Persistence

LOCAL CONTENT AND WEALTH CREATION…

Experts are in agreement that properly handled local content can facilitate the rapid industrialization of the country, stimulate investments that will positively transform other sectors of its economy and create more jobs for the unemployed.

But where are the specific points to explore:

Education/Training  opportunities

·Digitisation

LOCAL CONTENT AND WEALTH CREATION… CONT’D…

Government policies e.g. Cashless policy, Buy Nigeria among others

ICT-based media development (websites, CD-ROMs);

Information centres and tele-centres.

Distribution/Dissemination

Partnerships

DEDUCTIONS…

Local content is indispensable to sustainable national development, particularly in this instance as we talk about ICT.

Fortunately, the federal government has assured on its commitment to encourage local content as part of its transformational agenda.

Indeed since its establishment one year ago, the Ministry of Communication Technology has introduced a number of far reaching measures to promote local content, specifically it has sponsored a local content agenda to ensure wider participation of more Nigerian companies in the industry. The agenda is anchored on five goals namely – promoting local software and services, production of devices, card manufacturing, ICT infrastructure inputs and skills development.

Let us begin to, like they say ‘walk the talk’.

LOCAL CONTENT IS THE WAY TO GO …

Thank You!

REFERENCES..

American Psychological Association (APA): media. (n.d.). Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved February 24, 2008, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/media

Chicago Manual Style (CMS): media. Dictionary.com. Online Etymology Dictionary. Douglas Harper, Historian. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/media (accessed: February 24, 2008)

Khan, A.W. (2010). Promoting local content. Web World- UNESCO and World Summit on the Information Society. Available: http://www.itu.int/wiss/docs/pc2/roundtables/rt2/khan.pdf

Lowery, S & DeFleur, M (1988) Milestones in Mass Communication Research. New York: Longman

MacQuail, D (1989) Mass Communication Theory: An Introduction. London: Sage Modern Language Association (MLA): "media." Online Etymology Dictionary. Douglas

Harper, Historian. 24 February 2008. Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/media

NWABUEZE C. 2005 - Mass Media and Community Mobilization for Development: An Analytical Approach - International Journal of Communication ISSN 1597 - 4324.

UNESCO's Universal Declaration on Cultura Diversity, Article1. Available: http://www.itu.int/wiss/docs/pc2/roundtables/rt2/khan.pdf

YAKASAI A.S. 1996 - On The Press Responsibilities; Matters Arising (A Tutorial Handout for the International Institute of Journalism Diploma Course, held in Kano).

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/wealth-creation http://www.marketingpower.com/AboutAMA/Pages/DefinitionofMarketing.aspx