White models and voiceovers in British accents were once ubiquitous in Nigerian adverts. Not anymore. Nigeria has become the first country ever to announce a complete ban on foreign models when it comes to its television advertisements. Here’s all you need to know.
The move is a part of the “policy of developing local talent”
As part of a “policy of developing local talent”, the country’s advertising regulator has announced a complete ban on the use of foreign models and voiceover artists from October. This will be a huge cultural shift. Moreover, in the past, it was common for foreign faces and British-accented voices to feature heavily on Nigerian television.
Even before the ban was announced companies had to pay a 100,000-Naira (about $240) tariff for every foreign model used in an advert. It made Nigeria one of the world’s most uncompromising environments for media representation.
“I think the law is just catching up with national sentiment in Nigeria”
Announcing the ban earlier this week, Dr. Olalekan Foladapo, ARCON’s director general, explained that the policy would not affect ongoing advertising campaigns. He said they would be permitted to run out of their terms. He added that “subsequent applications for revalidation for continued exposure of such materials will not be granted by the Advertising Standards Panel.”
“Ten to 20 years ago, if you checked the commercials, I would say they were almost 50/50 in terms of foreign faces. Moreover, all the voiceovers were British accents.” Steve Babaeko, president of the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria, told The Times after the announcement.
“I think the law is just catching up with national sentiment. As long as maybe eight years ago, you would notice some kind of renaissance in Nigeria.”
“People will tell you, ‘There are about 200 million of us. Are you telling me you could not find indigenous models for this commercial?’” Babaeko explained.