ABUJA, NIGERIA — Nigeria’s media industry has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to grant tariff exemptions on key production materials such as newsprint and printing ink, warning that rising costs are threatening the sustainability of media organisations across the country.
The appeal was made on Friday when leaders of the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), and the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria (BON) met with the President at an interfaith Ramadan and Lenten dinner at the State House, Abuja.
Speaking on behalf of the industry, co-founder and publisher of BusinessDay, Frank Aigbogun, said media organisations remain committed to supporting national development but are facing severe operational pressures driven by escalating production costs.
“We appeal for your gracious intervention to ensure exemptions for tariffs on newsprint, ink and other materials essential to our operations,” Aigbogun said.
According to him, the high cost of importing these materials has significantly increased the financial burden on media houses already contending with declining advertising revenues and broader economic challenges.
Aigbogun warned that without urgent policy support, the sustainability of many media organisations could be undermined, weakening the capacity of the press to perform its democratic role.
The industry also raised concerns about the growing influence of global technology companies and artificial intelligence platforms, which stakeholders say are increasingly eroding the revenue base of traditional media organisations.
Tinubu Calls for Broader Accountability
In his remarks, President Tinubu urged the media to broaden its focus and intensify scrutiny of state and local governments in order to strengthen Nigeria’s federal system and promote accountability across all tiers of governance.
“We’ve opened up the principle of federalism to the extent that local governments are now getting their money. But how they use it is in your hands. Don’t bombard me alone; look out to the local government too,” the President said.
Tinubu added that state governments are also enjoying improved fiscal conditions under ongoing economic reforms and should be held accountable.
He disclosed that no state in the country is currently borrowing to pay workers’ salaries, attributing the development to reforms implemented by his administration, including higher crude oil production, improved revenue collection, and the direct payment of local government allocations following a Supreme Court judgment in July 2024.
“Today, there is no state that is borrowing to pay salaries of employees. Yes, we can complain it’s not enough. We can complain we are not where we should be, but we have to manage what we have to sustain today, survive tomorrow, and make progress,” the President stated.
Acknowledging Media Challenges
Tinubu acknowledged the difficult operating environment facing media organisations but commended journalists and publishers for their role in shaping public discourse.
He confessed to reading all newspapers daily, describing it as “an addiction” that keeps him informed about developments across the country.
The President also addressed concerns about the growing influence of global technology firms on Nigeria’s media ecosystem, assuring industry leaders that the Federal Government would support initiatives aimed at protecting local media institutions.
Earlier, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed that the Federal Government has begun engagements with global technology companies, including Google and Meta, over their impact on Nigeria’s media industry.
The dinner formed part of President Tinubu’s engagements with key national stakeholders during the Ramadan and Lenten season.
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