Nigeria’s film board doubles down on enforcement, trains 40 operatives in north central zone

National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) on Friday concluded training of 40 SPY Police drawn from North Central Nigeria in a bid to strengthen enforcement of anti piracy protocols in the country.

The 2024 SPY Training programme also included selected staff and stakeholders of the board which took place in Lafia, Nassarawa State.

Nollywood in the last five years have grown in leaps and bounds with many Nigerian movies grossing billions in naira, especially with its introduction into movie streaming giant, Netflix.

With a new management on board led by its mint new Executive Director, Husseini Shaibu, NFVCB is optimistic of bringing more integrity and profitability into movie making in Nigeria.

The training programme titled, ‘Empowering Staff for Effective Monitoring and Enforcement’ was declared open by Dr Shaibu (pictured left above) on behalf of the Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy Hannatu Musa Musawa.

The Minister through the ED underscored the importance of the training exercise, noting that, “it is aimed at keeping our Spy officers alert and enhance their capacity to monitor and carry out Enforcement activities of the Board”.

Husseini stated that the Board is doing so much to realise its mandate which he noted include providing enabling environment for the growth of the film industry and enhancing community understanding, confidence and usage in relation to the classification systems and outcomes.

He also stated that one of the agenda of the Honourable Minister is to support agencies under her ministry to continually empower and upskill the staff of the Board to meet its objectives by providing requisite internal capacity in the area of training, logistical support, information, financial resources and leadership.

He challenged the 40 Spy officers drawn from the North Central Zone of Benue and Plateau States and the Abuja Headquarters of the Board to key into the direction the Board is heading, which is to achieve its vision of becoming a world class classification and regulatory agency.

Hussieni, who is also the chief executive officer of the Board, noted that the era of Spy officers staying idle will soon be over at the board.

“Board is on the heels of ratifying a distribution protocol with platform owners which will have a significant impact on the Nigerian film industry,” he said.

Speaking at the event, the Director of the Service Innovation Department of the Board, Mrs Bola Athar, was full of commendation for the Honourable Minister and Executive Director for buying into the proposal to rotate the Spy training to locations where it has not held previously.

The Zonal Coordinator of the North Central Zone, Mrs. Margarita Oluwole, challenged her colleagues to see the training programme as a wake-up call to do more.

The Executive Director took the opportunity to inspect the Lafia Center Office of the Board.

He also set out targets of what he wants the centres to achieve in October and report to the headquarters through their Zonal Coordinator.

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