Gov. Godwin Obaseki

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bank of Industry (BoI), have disclosed plans to partner with the Edo State Government to ease access to finance to creators at the Edo Creative Hub.

Edo Creative Hub is an initiative of the State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, to rejig the state’s entertainment industry.

The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Investment Promotion, Mr Kelvin Uwaibi, who disclosed this in a chat with journalists, said the finance windows are expected to come from the programmes extended to the entertainment industry in an effort to diversify the Nigerian economy.

He noted that the opportunity came in the wake of the Stakeholders Meeting with actors in Nigerian’s entertainment industry held in Benin City. The stakeholders meeting was organised by EdoJobs, Edo State Investment Promotion Office, Trace TV and Market Development in the Niger Delta (MADE), which is funded by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID).

Uwaibi said the State government is working on a creative industry policy document that would provide the framework for the industry in the state and set parameters for government intervention and incentives.

According to him, “We had a productive chat with members of the creative industry and are currently working on the entertainment industry policy document. The CBN and BoI have made commitments to ease access to finance and we are excited about that. This will set the tone for government’s engagement with the actors in the industry and set modalities for the incentives we will be providing.”

The Governor’s aide added that the plan was to ensure that the indigenous actors in the industry benefit from the input of those in the Diaspora, ensuring that the funds to be attracted are domiciled in and used by the actors across the different value chain in the state.

“Our intention is to raise the standard. There will be a lot of capacity building. In no distant time, people from Edo will dominate the entertainment scene in Nigeria, as they will be getting the needed incentives to truly make an impact,” he added.