Shaibu Husseini, Executive Director and CEO of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has said that Netflix has not exited the Nigerian market.
In a conversation with THISDAY, Husseini stated that the streaming giant is still active in the country. “Netflix has not left Nigeria, as widely reported,” he said. “The streaming giant is still licensing Nigerian content and has only taken an investment decision to scale down operations for the time being.”
The NFVCB chief’s assertion comes after a Nigerian delegation, led by him, visited Netflix’s corporate headquarters in Amsterdam in February. The delegation, appointed by Minister of Arts, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, visited Netflix’s headquarters, where they discussed the implications of halting original content commissioning in Nigeria.
For months, rumours and reports had suggested that Netflix pulled out of Nigeria due to alleged unethical practices by some filmmakers, including the diversion of production resources. Husseini dismissed these claims, stating: “There is no truth in the story making the rounds that they scaled down their investment because Nigerian producers were alleged to be diverting production resources.”
“Nothing like that,” he added. “In fact, Netflix looks forward to continued engagements with the industry, reinforcing their role as a key partner in promoting Nigerian films internationally.”
Months ago, Husseini told Film Efiko that the Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, which supervises the NFVCB, is working on making importation of cinema, mobile, and community cinema equipment tax-free.
Husseini added that, usually investors in cinemas would pay an exhibition license fee, which takes the number of screens into account, and is usually about 25m naira at the start, following which a 5m annual renewal fee will be paid. But both fees will be waived under the new guidelines.
“It’s to encourage investment in community cinemas,” he said.
