NEMCEA 2026: ARCON, NBC and FRCN Align to Secure Future of Nigeria’s Creative Economy
By Azeez Disu
In a landmark policy alignment session at the Nigerian Electronic Media Content Exhibition and Awards (NEMCEA 2026), the heads of Nigeria’s primary media and advertising regulatory bodies have laid out a coordinated blueprint to reform, digitise, and secure the future of the nation’s rapidly growing creative economy.
Meeting face-to-face at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos, the Director-General of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), Dr Olalekan Fadolapo; the Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Mr Charles Ebuebu; and the Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Dr Mohammed Bulama, tackled the pressing challenges of industry standardisation, technological disruption, and monetization head-on.
Under the event’s central theme, “Create economy, elevate your craft, secure your future,” the regulators sent a clear message to brand owners, marketing professionals, and content creators: the era of unstructured operations is over, and a highly regulated, data-backed ecosystem is being built to support sustainable business growth.
Dr Olalekan Fadolapo (ARCON) emphasized that ARCON is “not regulating to strangulate” but is enforcing the Advertising Industry Standard Practice (AISOP) to protect content creators from exploitative 120-day payment cycles. He also issued a firm warning to creators attempting to bypass registered advertising agencies to deal directly with corporate clients, stating that “shortcutting the circuit” is illegal and leaves creators legally unprotected.
Mr Charles Ebuebu (NBC) announced plans to establish a Joint Monitoring Board under the Ministry of Information and National Orientation to close regulatory gaps between sister agencies. He also revealed that NBC is developing groundbreaking Online Safety Regulations, guidelines for the responsible use of AI in broadcasting, and is collaborating with manufacturers to integrate precise audience measurement technology directly into television set-top boxes.
Dr Mohammed Bulama (FRCN) candidly addressed the historical stereotypes of public broadcasting, admitting that thinking Radio Nigeria had fully reclaimed its historical monopoly overnight would be “delusional”. However, he outlined major infrastructure investments, including transitioning no fewer than 20 regional stations to solar power to combat energy issues, rebuilding their historic Broadcast Academy in Shogunle from scratch, and tasking their research directorate to produce rigorous, scientific audience measurement data to give brands and marketers empirical confidence.
