ARCON Orders Advertising Agencies, Others To Pay N1bn Insurance Cover

Federal government has mandated Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Experiential Marketers Association of Nigeria (EXMAN), Media Independent Practitioners Association of Nigeria (MIPAN) and Outdoor Advertising Association of Nigeria (OAAN) to pay N1 billion professional industry insurance cover for its members.

The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) which gave the directive also set up a sectoral group for advert agencies as part of the ongoing advertising industry reform of the federal government to strengthen advertising agencies service delivery, build capacity and capability as well as ensure long term stability in the industry.

Addressing newsmen in Abuja yesterday, the director-general of ARCON, Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo, said each sectoral group, i.e. AAAN, EXMAN, MIPAN and OAAN fee covers professional indemnity for members of their association as part of the corporate licence requirements.

He said the full implementation of the corporate licence regime will take effect from April 1, 2024.

Fadolapo said there is an urgent need to review the capital structure and working capital requirement of the advertisement agencies in line with economic realities and capacity building programmes of ARCON.

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He stated that ARCON is currently in talk with the Heads of Advertising Sectoral Groups (HASG) and other relevant stakeholders on the minimum capital requirement for registration and licence as an advertising agency.

He stressed that ARCON is collaborating with EFCC, NBC and other government agencies on the implementation of the 45 days credit threshold in the advertising industry.

“Any organisation that offered payment threshold outside 45 credit policy will be tagged as economic saboteur of the Nigeria advertising industry.

“Such organisations will be flagged and reported to other government agencies for further investigation and necessary punitive actions,” he said.

Fadolapo said globally, payment threshold is a policy in the advertising industry, some stakeholders have been offering Nigerian media and other service providers 120 days payment circle, thereby impoverishing the Nigerian advertising industry.

He highlighted that the same stakeholders prepay foreign media houses operating in Nigeria for media services, some had insisted on old practices that have led to industry debt and exploitation of media owners.

“ARCON will continue to insist that Nigerians should be considered as primary in all advertisements targeted at the Nigerian market, use of foreign models and voices are banned except where it is inevitable,” he said.