25 Jan MADE IN NIGERIA IS MADE IN EVERYWHERE BUT NIGERIA

Just as the filming of Big Brother Naija 2017 begins at the beautiful South African mansion, Nigerians took to twitter to voice their disappointment and express that they would have preferred that the show be shot in Nigeria. This was also the same reaction that Captain America: Civil War received from Nigerians as they demand that films that showcase Nigeria should be shot in Nigeria.  Also note that The Voice Nigeria was shot in South Africa while Nigerian Entertainment Awards hold in the US.

Nigerians are asking for more home made products. This I believe has contributed to the broadening of the indigenous creative market including film, fashion and music industry. The fashion industry in Nigeria matures and expands steadily each passing moment but these are still being done in small scales. As the fashion industry in Nigeria focuses on ready to wear and haute couture, creating a high street brand to reach the masses and still sell at a reasonable price may require one to manufacture in Asia or anywhere else but Nigeria. One can also find that the celebrated Nigerian fashion is only half Nigerian as most, if not all of the raw materials used for production are sourced abroad.

The music industry here is also taking giant strides towards greatness with a good number of artists shooting their videos locally and with local models. Others still shoot abroad for special effect. Nollywood which is ranked as the world’s most prolific movie producer still feel the need to shoot their big budget movies abroad except 76 The Movie which was filmed mostly in Ibadan.

Power infrastructure has been a major challenge facing the Nigerian manufacturing sector. A school of thought believes that granting licenses to manufacturers to generate own power may proffer an interim solution to this problem. Some factories in northern Nigeria have also been shut down due to security issues.

The manufacturing sector contributes less than 10 percent to the Gross Domestic Product and Nigeria ranks 169^th out of 190 countries in the ease of doing business. The Government should look inwards and address policies to help soften the harsh operating environment and even bring in foreign investors. So basically, the only thing that may be fully made in Nigeria at the moment is the brawny creative energy bursting at the seams.

Ijeoma Okoli

Emc3 Nigeria