Market Research on the Vocational Training for the Filmmaking Sector in Nigeria

Client Name: The French Development Agency (Agence Française De Développement - AFD) in collaboration with the Nigeria Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning
Date: February – June
Location: Nigeria

By: Henrietta Ifyede,
Analyst, International Development

Nigeria's film industry is one industry with a high potential to tackle the increasing unemployment rate in the country. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) further puts it into perspective in its economic report that, in relation to the Entertainment industry, the film industry contributes significantly about 2.3% of the country's GDP while also accounting for one of the largest employers of labour.

According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, Nollywood, as the film industry is popularly referred to, is the second-largest audiovisual industry in the world based on the number of movies produced each year. The industry is also fast rising and can arguably be regarded as Nigeria's 'new oil' because creatives and their creations are among Nigeria's biggest exports.

Although the industry is hugely underfunded, it presents a large capacity and numerous opportunities for growth and development of the audiovisual landscape, especially with technological advancements. The industry depicts a blend of culture and history through storytelling.

The National Film Corporation (NFC), under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, is mandated to develop the film industry in Nigeria. This is to produce films for domestic and export consumption and encourage local talents through training and financial aid. The goal is to help support the national plan to diversify the revenue generation for the economy.

However, the only training centre owned by the government is the National film institute (NFI). The NFI was established by the NFC, which also serves as a governing body for the development of the industry.

Although some private institutions and training courses are designed to meet the sector's needs, there is still a wide gap between the products from these institutions and the actual level of skill required for the industry. Furthermore, there is also a shortage of well-equipped institutions that provide capacity development for relevant core technical skills and best in class training facilities to meet the increasing technological advancement to compete globally.

pcl. was contracted by the French Development Agency (AFD) and the Nigeria Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to collaborate with the NFC. The purpose was to conduct a comprehensive study/research to understand the audiovisual training sector in Nigeria and the role and place occupied by the NFI/NFC in this sector.

In addition, this study was to serve as the foundation for a potential loan from AFD to the Federal Government of Nigeria. The purpose of the loan is to train, through the NFI, 2,000 people per year in audiovisual professions as part of the national agenda for job creation and poverty alleviation.

This project involved pcl. providing in-depth advisory and technical services to conduct comprehensive market research and data gathering activities of the filmmaking training sector in Nigeria. This study included a general diagnosis of the audiovisual/filmmaking training sector; analysis of leading economic actors, professional bodies, occupations; existing and future skills in the film industry; filmmaking training curriculum and services provided by higher education institutions and key industry players. The research further included a SWOT and gap analysis of the training industry and its services, labour market demand in the audiovisual sector, and a gender analysis of the audiovisual training industry, the NFI and their alumni network.

pcl. 's team of research experts, data scientists, business and digital technology consultants carried out an in-depth diagnosis of the delivery of the audiovisual/filmmaking training, including analysis of the industry's leading economic actors, professional bodies, governing structure, accreditation platforms, partnership policies, occupations; skills in the film industry and a comparative analysis of other film institutions in Nigeria. The NFI and other film institutions in Nigeria were benchmarked globally, regionally.

We deployed a combination of accelerated and collaborative data gathering approaches under the guidance of the COVID-19 protocols. The approach included interviews (in person or phone), questionnaires (online and in-person) and focus group workshops on gathering the data and information required.