Former Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Femi Soneye, has reiterated calls for government support and tax relief for the Nigerian media.
Soneye made the call on Tuesday while receiving the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Federal Capital Territory Council’s Excellence in Corporate Communications award.
Highlighting the challenges confronting the industry, he urged the government to provide relief in the form of tax incentives and waivers on import duties for newsprint, broadcast equipment, and digital infrastructure.
“The Nigerian media remains one of the most vibrant in Africa, but it also faces systemic challenges—financial, political, legal, and technological—that weaken its effectiveness. The government can play a supportive role by granting tax incentives or relief on import duties for newsprint, broadcast equipment, and digital infrastructure,” he said.
Soneye also called on the Federal Government to establish an independent media development fund to support investigative journalism, community radio, and newsroom innovation.
His call aligns with repeated appeals by media stakeholders, including the Nigerian Guild of Editors, for President Bola Tinubu to intervene to save the industry amid the country’s economic hardship.
At the All Nigerian Editors Conference held recently in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, NGE President, Anaba Eze, had identified scarcity of resource materials as the biggest threat to media survival.
