The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, has expressed readiness to partner with the Nigeria Film Corporation, NFC, to create job opportunities for unemployed Nigerian youths.
Mrs Ahmed disclosed this while receiving a report on the development of the film industry at the Nigeria Film Corporation in Jos, on Tuesday.
The minister, represented by the Director of Economic Growth Department, Aso Patrick, revealed that the project was in partnership with the NFC and the Agencie Francaise de Developpement of France, AFD.
She said: “This partnership is aimed at understanding the film industry and see its potential and how government can leverage on it to strengthen the industry and churn out people who will create and develop films.
“With the country’s large population of youths, the film industry would provide jobs for the youths, the film industry globally is capable of creating jobs.”
Mrs Ahmed expressed regret that the country graduated a lot of youths each year who had nothing to do.
According to her, the government alone cannot create jobs for all unemployed youths, hence the partnership with the AFD and other critical stakeholders.
In his remarks, the Managing Director of the NFC, Chidia Maduekwe, stated that the film industry was capable of lifting millions of Nigerians out of poverty.
He said the creative industry had created jobs for 20 million Nigerians from the 100 million the government was targeting to lift out of poverty.
“We have taken about 20 million out of poverty, and with this partnership, we can do more,” Mr Maduekwe said.
According to him, more would be done by involving more hands on the digital economy innovations as well as breaking frontiers that hitherto had been dormant.
Mr Maduekwe described Nigeria as a country with a lot of diversity, adding that many players were coming into the country making it the creative capital of the world.
A film entrepreneur, Madu Chukwuendu, called for more planning using data collection while urging stakeholders to do more.
Mr Chukwuendu, who said that government could only do its best, added that the sector needed to do its part by lobbying effectively to get adequate attention from the government and other stakeholders.
NAN
