Categories: Business

Fresh controversies trail ARCON’s new laws, as ADVAN flays ban on foreign models

THE last seems not to have been heard on the recently-released set of legislations governing advertising practice in the country by the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON).

But, unlike some earlier reactions, commending the apex regulatory body for its determination to reform the industry, with the new laws, the Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), the national body representing advertisers in Nigeria, seems to be toeing a different path.

The body had, in a statement, expressed its reservation, regarding the new laws, especially the one that has to do with the ban of foreign models in Nigerian advertising.

The association also raised an eyebrow about the manner in which the apex advertising regulatory body had handled the issue of alleged indebtedness between Hayat Kimya and Mainsail Media Limited.

Describing the ban on foreign models as ‘not well thought-out’, the association’s Executive Council, in the statement, stated that the recent pronouncement by ARCON on the foreign models amounts to a poorly-researched and ineffective attempt at seeking a solution for sustainable growth in the nation’s advertising industry.

According to the association, Nigeria, as part of the global economy, has an expatriate policy which allows for non-Nigerians to be gainfully and legally employed by Nigerian organisations, in adherence to the stipulations of the law. It, therefore, believes such a ban contravenes the aforementioned policy and presents Nigeria, a country that has a significant percentage of its population seeking income opportunities outside the country, as a strict, insular, and non-reciprocal society.

“It is a widely known fact that Nigerian models, creatives, and voice-over artists are also beneficiaries of the friendly cross-border work/trade interactions that currently exist. This ban, therefore, puts distinct demography of Nigerians of employable age – especially youths who make up a large number of those in this space, at a significant disadvantage with their global counterparts,” the association argued.

ADVAN also expressed the belief that such a ban is not only harmful to Nigeria and Nigerians, but also discriminatory, exclusionary, and does little to advance Nigeria’s commitment, for instance, to the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), which she and her businesses stand to benefit from.

“While it is beneficial to create opportunities for local businesses and talents, it is counterproductive to do so in a manner that creates a harmful perception of the nation, as an over-regimented and unwelcoming society,” the association’s Executive Council further stated.

It added that the use of foreign models by advertisers does not represent a significant percentage of the Nigerian advertising scene, an assertion it argued, could be seen in the monumental growth in the Nigerian music, creative, and movie industries.

“Here it has been made apparent that Nigerian talents are very respected and sought after – home and abroad. Nigerian brands have also wholeheartedly embraced home-grown talent in their brand-building activities and have done so without any unnecessary government fiat, therefore, such a ban is totally unwarranted and self-serving in nature,” it stated.

The body of advertisers, therefore, called on the government to embrace comprehensive stakeholder interactions and inclusivity in their policy creation and implementation to enhance the growth of the nation’s advertising landscape.

ADVAN also counselled the apex regulatory body not to meddle in a contractual dispute, between Hayat Kimya Limited and Mainsail Media, bordering on alleged fraud, which is a subject of investigations by the appropriate law enforcement agency(ies).

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