By Funsho Arogundade
The Performing Musicians Employers Association of Nigeria (PMAN) and Musical Copyright Society of Nigeria (MCSN) have collaborated with Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) and Embassy of Spain in Nigeria on how to harness and monetize the abundant talents dotting the Nigerian music landscape.
In his opening remarks at the roundtable with the theme: ‘Maximising the International Dimension of Music as a Vehicle of Culture’ held at Nigerian Music House, Chevy View Estate, Lekki, Lagos on March 24, 2023, the PMAN president, Mr. Pretty Okafor, noted the essence of the discussion was to create synergy between various organisations and the Spanish mission in Nigeria on the talents coming out of the country, and how to monetize their contents to ultimately reflect in the nation’s economy.
According to Okafor, a 2015 research conducted by the musicians’ body revealed that with the quantum of talents in the country, Nigeria could generate over N15 trillion from the entertainment industry. “But how do we create synergy and structure to make the generation of that huge revenue reflect in our economy? We need to keep discussing and working with everyone on how to create a tracking system of those talents for the benefits of all, and the Nigerian economy as a whole,” he said.
Moderated by the Arts Editor of The Nation Newspaper, Mr. Ozolua Uhakheme, the roundtable had a lead discussion by seven speakers, who sought to explore the issues and pathways to optimize the benefits of the Nigerian music economy.
Speaking, the Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Juan Ignacio Sell, thanked PMAN for the opportunity offered him to participate in the roundtable and incorporate the programme as part of the 3 days Vis A Vis music festival recently organised by the Embassy of Spain in Nigeria.
He highlighted several ways Nigeria, with its rich cultural heritage and huge trove of creative talents, especially in the area of music currently reverberating and accepted globally, can benefit from its counterparts abroad.
“The Spanish Embassy is ready to support every initiative from the roundtable. Already, Spain has as part of its foreign policy, cultural policies that play strategic roles aided by our cultural and artistic wealth,” Ambassador Sell stated.
Addressing participants, the Director General, Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), Dr John Asein, said the best way to harness the abundant talents in the music industry is to have an efficient, responsive and functional copyright system.
“NCC is already rebooting Nigeria’s digital copyright system with the music sector. PMAN is the only body that represents Nigerian artistes, and to that extent, everyone must support the association to succeed,” he stressed.
Other lead speakers at the roundtable included Mayo Ayilaran, CEO, MCSN; Vincente Sanchis, Director, SGAE; Julio Gomez, Sin Sal Festival’s representative; NCC’s Michael Akpan; representative of Music Producers Association of Nigeria (MPAN); and representative of Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA).