Broadcast - NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA

Information minister at NAB forum in U.S. pledges strengthening of broadcast sector

Ismail Abdulaziz
Apr, Mon, 2025

Foreign

Information minister at NAB forum in U.S. pledges strengthening of broadcast sector

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By Mufutau Ojo
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, has reaffirmed government’s commitment to collaborating with key stakeholders in the global information and broadcasting sector to strengthen Nigeria’s information dissemination framework.

This pledge was made on Monday during discussions with prominent broadcast and information companies at the ongoing National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show 2025 in Las Vegas, United States.

Speaking at the event, Idris said the Bola Tinubu administration remained committed to adopting cutting-edge technologies and acquiring state-of-the-art equipment for Federal Government media organisations to ensure effective service delivery.

“Strategic communication is essential to ensuring that the policies of the Renewed Hope Agenda reach the Nigerian people effectively,” he stated.

The minister also highlighted the government’s plans to invest in upgrading facilities and replacing outdated infrastructure in radio, television and other media institutions.

According to the minister, this will improve the dissemination of credible, balanced and objective information to the public.

Idris further said that the government would explore collaborations and partnerships that would allow local broadcasters to benefit from emerging technologies and industry-specific training opportunities.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the minister had visited exhibitions showcasing hardware and software solutions during the event.

Items exhibited included broadcast antennas, transmitters and studio equipment which are pivotal for enhancing broadcasting capabilities.

NAN also reports that Thomas King, Chairman of KINTRONIC Laboratories and Enrico Vaccari, Chief Operating Officer of Axel Technology SRL, had expressed their organisations’ readiness to partner with the Nigerian government.

Gianluca Baccalini, Chief Operating Officer of System Engineering Solutions and Khiran Keerodhur, Chief Operating Officer of Thomson Broadcast, among others, also expressed commitment to enhancing Nigeria’s broadcasting landscape and regulatory agencies.

Idris is leading a delegation of chief executives of agencies in his ministry to the NAB event.

Members of the delegation included the Managing Director of NAN, Ali Muhammad Ali, and the Director-General of the Nigeria Television Authority, Salihu Dembos.

Others are the Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission, Charles Ebuebu; and Director-General of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria, Lekan Fadolapo.

Also in the delegation is the Director-General of Voice of Nigeria, Jibrin Ndace.

The forum, NAN reports, is to strengthen broadcast collaborations and form strategic alliances.

The NAB event, running from Saturday to Wednesday, has as theme: “The Technology, The Trend, The Future.”

NAN also reports that the forum is focusing on a range of topics, including Artificial Intelligence, cloud visualisation, creator economy as well as sports production and streaming.(NAN)(nannews.ng)

Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz

NAN to commence broadcast in local languages in 2025 – MD

Tosin Kolade
Nov, Thu, 2024

General News

NAN to commence broadcast in local languages in 2025 – MD

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By EricJames Ochigbo

The Managing Director of News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Malam Ali M. Ali, says the agency will commence broadcast in local languages before the end of 2025.

Ali made this known on Wednesday in Abuja at a public hearing organised by the House of Representatives Special Committee on Restructuring Federal Government Agencies.

NAN reports that the hearing was on the need to scrap outdated agencies and ensuring merger of government agencies with similar mandates.

Ali said with the emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI), NAN was set to inaugurate portals to broadcast in the three major languages of Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo – before the end of 2025.

According to the managing director, Immersive Journalism (IJ) has come into the media space and it is taking over jobs, while many people are not aware.

NAN reports that IJ is a news reporting style that uses technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) to create a first-person experience for the audience.

The goal is to help the audience to understand and empathise with a story by placing them within the device.

Ali said that the commencement of broadcast in local languages was part of ongoing reforms in the agency to bring it up-to-date and ahead of the current trends.

According to him, NAN is not afraid of competition, given its large workforce, partnership and professionalism.

“We have already started in Hausa; Hausa is the largest spoken language in West Africa; we have 88 million speakers in Nigeria, according to National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

“Hausa is about the only non-ethnic language; people who are not necessarily Hausa speak and understand the language.

“Early next year, we are hoping to launch the Yoruba portal and by the middle of the year, we will have the Igbo portal; it is work in progress.

“We are asking our reporters to study other foreign languages like Arabic and French because we have to reposition the agency,” he said.

On revenue generation, the managing director said that NAN generated N215 million in 2024, stressing that NAN was already going into digital marketing to add to the revenue being generated from subscription.

Aside the contents to sell on social media like Facebook, Tiktok and X, he said, NAN was also consolidating its revenue generation like other media organisations.

The committee commended the agency for the professionalism and high standards in news reporting.

Rep. Ademorin Kuye (APC-Lagos) said that in spite of current challenges, NAN had remained impressive in its news reporting.

Kuye said NAN had been patriotic and optimistic in its news gathering and dissemination.

The committee ruled that the management should furnish the committee with areas of NAN Establishment Act that required amendment to enable the agency to perform optimally. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by ‘Wale Sadeeq