Starting from October 1, Nigeria has officially banned foreign models and voice-over artists from being featured in advertisements. In a tweet, the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) shared a statement on how the ban aims to develop local talent and encourage inclusivity in Nigeria’s media industry by only using Nigerian models and voice-over artists. The nation’s radical policy has sparked debates on the feasibility and rationale of the ban. Will the policy be considered progress in spurring local talent or is it simply another form of discrimination?

Nigeria has become the first country to officially ban foreign models and voice-over artists within the advertising industry, which currently features a large percentage of those with white skin color and British accents. There have already been restrictions on using foreign models as firms had to pay a fee of 100,000 Nigerian naira (NGN), which corresponds to 240 United States Dollars (USD), when employing a model from another country. However, following the new restriction, models with white skin color and voice-over artists using British accents are completely banned from Nigerian advertisements altogether.

Ties to Post Colonialism

The new law has gone into effect since October 1, also known as Nigeria’s Independence Day. Banning foreign models from the advertising industry can be seen as an attempt to enhance the nation’s identity and pride by correcting the influence of Western Exceptionalism. Nigeria was a colony of the British Empire from 1884 to 1960 and therefore many sectors of the nation’s economy, language, and culture have been heavily influenced by British rule. Such remains of colonialism are still largely relevant in Nigerian society as it has been less than 70 years since the nation gained independence.

Considering Nigeria’s history, the ban on foreign models and voice-over artists can be understood in relation to postcolonialism. Postcolonialism broadly refers to the study of the effects of colonialism and imperialism within colonized regions. Other than simply identifying the influence of colonialization, postcolonialism aims to correct colonialist theories and encourage cultural, societal, philosophical, and economic autonomy within the nation.

Professor Eom Han-Jin (Sociology, Hallym University) further explains that by choosing to rectify the overrepresentation of Western influence and adopt more national talent, Nigeria has taken a step forward in embodying the values of nationalism. He adds that similar social trends are being witnessed in Middle East countries as well, in which nations attempt to hire more local workers to replace jobs that were one time heavily reliant on foreign workers.

Desirability Politics, Colorism, Texturism

Advertisements play a significant role in portraying society’s beauty standards. Most models who are featured in advertisements are considered socially ideal and attractive. Therefore, previous Nigerian advertisements that overrepresented those with white skin color showed their tendency to inherently favor Western beauty standards. This can be further explained in relation to desirability politics, which explores how societal and cultural values affect what people find attractive and desirable. A major problematic aspect of desirability politics is that it mainly revolves around biased views shaped by Western beauty standards.

For instance, the term colorism refers to a bias in which people tend to favor those with lighter skin color. The term texturism refers to the prejudice of how hair textures of those with white skin color are deemed more favorable compared to Afro-textured hair. Featuring more white models than necessary is rooted in the preference to consider major physical features of those with white skin color as more attractive. Similarly, the British accent has been considered to be more desirable than the local accent; therefore, many voice-over artists with British accents were used in previous advertisements. Hence, Nigeria’s decision to completely ban foreign people and accents is a significant step in tackling the West-centrism mentality deeply rooted within the advertising industry.

Controversies & Further Implications

Nevertheless, the new law has also sparked many controversies. While the ARCON’s objective to boost local talent and inclusive economic growth seems relevant, excluding a particular race from being able to participate in the media industry may be considered too extreme. Professor Eom comments that while the act attempts to strengthen national identity, it holds the dangers of encouraging xenophobia and right-wing extremism.

Moreover, the policy leaves room for uncertainty on what is precisely considered foreign and local. Not all Nigerians have dark skin and hair color, considering immigrants or those who were born in cross-culture families. The government’s attempt to standardize what the average Nigerian is supposed to look and sound like can be greatly problematic, as it enforces standards that exclude those who do not fit in. Nigerians ought not be classified solely based on their skin color or accent in a world where so many different ethnicities co-exist.

Nigeria is the first country to introduce a law of this nature, but it may not be the last. Nigeria’s ban on foreign models and voice-over artists raises the question: Should other countries follow this trend? Professor Eom shared his views on this question, bringing up examples of South Korea’s policies, such as the screen quota system and restriction on importing rice. He points out how government intervention may be necessary for protecting certain industries and sectors. However, he warns that in the current globalized society where boundaries of language, culture, and industries are becoming less prominent, measures that attempt to protect citizens may ironically result in limiting their possibilities. Adding on to this, Professor Eom mentions that it is greatly challenging for any nation to manage its economy by exclusively relying on domestic human and material resources without interaction with other countries.

Many countries other than Nigeria also face similar issues in how many sectors of society tend to revolve around Western values and standards. Nigeria’s new policy leaves room to consider the ideal pathway of reclaiming cultural and social autonomy by correcting the remains of colonialism even in a world where colonies no longer exist.