President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has pledged government support for Nigerian media organisations in their campaign against the dominance of global technology companies and the economic challenges facing the local press.
Speaking at the State House on Friday during an interfaith dinner with a delegation from the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO), the President described the press as an indispensable partner in Nigeria’s journey toward economic stability, press freedom and social cohesion.
Tinubu assured media stakeholders that his administration would support efforts to address what he described as “digital cannibalisation” and fiscal hurdles threatening the survival of local media organisations.
Tariff Review to Ease Industry Costs
The President also disclosed that the government is reviewing the country’s tariff exemption list and may include key materials used by media organisations.
These items include newsprint, printing plates, chemicals and broadcast equipment used by radio and television stations, which currently attract tariffs ranging between five and ten per cent.
According to the Chief Executive Officer of the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria, Segun Adediran, granting tariff exemptions would place these materials in the same category as educational and research resources.
With the industry facing soaring costs of production materials, Tinubu signalled readiness to intervene.
“You have the government’s full support, because we know how important your work is to the sustenance of democracy,” the President said.
During the meeting, Deputy President of NPAN and Publisher of BusinessDay Media, Frank Aigbogun, accused some global tech companies of exploiting media content.
He alleged that certain technology platforms scrape proprietary media content to train artificial intelligence models, sometimes by bypassing digital paywalls.
Aigbogun urged the President to direct the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to collaborate with the media industry to investigate complaints against Big Tech companies.
According to him, the dominance and anti-competitive practices of these platforms are costing Nigerian media organisations up to 70 per cent of their legitimate income, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Government Engaging Global Tech Firms
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, confirmed that the government has already begun discussions with major technology companies, including Meta Platforms and Google.
“The government will not allow anybody to come here, reap from our economy, and go away without giving back,” Idris said.
The NPO delegation was led by its President and Publisher of The Guardian Nigeria, Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru.
Other prominent media figures present included former Ogun State governor Olusegun Osoba, Publisher of Vanguard Newspaper Sam Amuka, Chairman of Arise News Prince Nduka Obaigbena, Chairman of Channels Television John Momoh, and Director-General of the Nigerian Television Authority, Saliu Abdulhamid Dembos.
Also present were the President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Eze Anaba; President of the Online Publishers Association of Nigeria, Danlami Nmodu; and President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Alhassan Yahya Abdullahi.
Vice President Kashim Shettima and several presidential aides were also in attendance.
The engagement followed a January petition by the NPO raising concerns over what it described as the existential threat posed by Big Tech operations to Nigeria’s media industry.