APCON to kick off advertising 6th code in December
By Felicia Nwosu
The eagle eye and Umpire behind the paradigm shift in the Nigeria advertising industry and Registrar of Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), Dr. Lekan Fadolapo, has revealed that operation of the 6th edition of the advertising code will kick off from December 1, 2021, while the 5th code will cease to operate on November 30, 2021.
The Registrar stated this in an exclusive interview with MARKETING EDGE. The APCON Chief said the 6th Code operation has the approval of the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed. While adding that it is in accordance with the virtue of the powers vested in the minister by Section 29 of the Advertising Practitioners (Registration and others) Act, CAP A7, and L.F.N.2004, as amended, Dr. Fadolapo noted that the various adopted regulatory steps and review of the advertising code are all geared towards a total reform of the industry.
He emphasised that the Council is resolved at ensuring that advertising practice aligns with new realties. This is through the Advertising Industry Standards of Practice (AISOP) and the approval of the 6th edition of code of advertising practice, sales promotion and other Rights/Restriction on practice.
According to the industry stalwart, the provisions in the new code were considered and adopted by APCON in collaboration with the sectoral groups and consultation with relevant stakeholders in the advertising and marketing communications industry to deliberate and provide recommendations towards the code. The Registrar disclosed that the advertising code was reviewed five years ago, stating that the industry, over the years, has evolved technologically. He stated the need for regulators and operators to keep abreast of the new realties.
“Recently, we were able to get the approval of the honourable minister for us to implement the revised code. This reform is in phases, but the general focus is on how we develop our industry. By the end of the year when we will be presenting our plan for next year, these are some of the things we will include in our presentation, so that we can move to the next level.”
The advertising guru also hinted on some of the Council’s future projections. “We are trying to see how we can build capacity for next year so that we can be stronger when it comes to regulatory framework. We are trying to promote a policy called localisation, and it is one of the things we are promoting now. The world has become a global village, so you can hear things like global procurement policy and that is what we are doing.”
The industry egghead further said APCON is committed to enforcing the implementation of the 6th edition and, therefore, urged all stakeholders to support and ensure its success, reiterating that APCON shall, in line with section 9(2)(d) and (e) of the advertising practitioners (Registration etc) Act, CAP A7, L.F.N. 2004, remove from the register of practitioners with effect from Friday Dec. 17, 2021, the names of persons who have failed, refused or neglected to pay the prescribed practice fees in accordance with their category of membership for the past five years.
RECOMMENDED ARTICLES
Comment
No comments found.