Director General, Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), Dr. Lekan Fadolapo, has challenged Nigeria’s economic drivers and policy formulators on the importance of data to economic growth.
Speaking on Friday at the WEBINER on Top Trends in 2024 -Unlocking Insights Media, Consumer and Market, organised by MediaReach OMD and Lagos Business School, Fadolapo pointed out that data has become the new oil and the new gold, arguing that it’s the fuel that powers innovation and growth in many economies around the globe.
He said, “Accurate data is essential for driving productivity, enabling better decision-making, allowing for precise targeting and marketing efforts, and helping to develop and preserve brand credibility. All of these factors contribute to driving ROI and profitability for brands and agencies alike,”
For Nigeria to reap the benefits of a promising future, sustain the giant of Africa status and remain the largest consumer market on the continent with a growing and young urban population, the ARCON DG said it’s imperative that stakeholders challenge themselves to meet and set global standards and practices, which would make the country become a beacon for others on the continent to follow.
“Although Nigeria’s GDP growth over the last decade has been a journey of resilience and recovery, we have faced challenges, and we have also witnessed significant growth and development. Despite these challenges, we remain optimistic about our economic prospects, bolstered by our vibrant entrepreneurial energy and the potential for job creation and innovation.
“Economic prosperity is measured by an increase in gross domestic product (GDP), which is defined as the combined value of all goods and services produced within a country in a year. Globally, economic growth is often driven by consumer spending and business investment. Trade is central to ending global poverty, with countries open to international trade tending to grow faster, innovate, improve productivity, and provide higher income and more opportunities to their people.
While admitting that innovation leads to growth and that new ideas and technologies needed to be developed and applied, to generate greater output with the same input, Fadolapo concluded that marketing communications plays a crucial role in this overall future growth, adding that it would act as a catalyst for commerce, which in turn drives economic prosperity for all.
Drawing home his point, the advertising practitioner emphasised that data is indeed the lifeblood of Nigeria’s economy and the fuel for her growth.
“Let us take the initiative to harness this precious resource, to curate and share it, to use it to drive our productivity, our decision-making, our marketing efforts, and our brand credibility. Let us use data to drive our ROI and profitability, for the benefit of our brands, our agencies, and our people,” he further