...Vows Tariff Relief on Newsprint and Equipment. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has thrown the full weight of his administration behind Nigeria’s media industry in its escalating fight against Big Tech’s dominance, unfair content usage, and crippling economic pressures, while promising to slash or eliminate import tariffs on essential production materials.

Speaking at a high-level interfaith dinner held at the State House on Friday, March 13, 2026, the President described the Nigerian press as an “indispensable partner” in the country’s drive for economic recovery, democratic consolidation, and national unity.

“We will help dismantle the fiscal hurdles and digital cannibalisation currently threatening the survival of the press,” Tinubu declared, assuring the delegation that his government is actively reviewing the national tariff exemption list.

Among the items under consideration for zero or reduced duty (currently 5–10%) are newsprint, printing plates, chemicals, and broadcast equipment for radio and television—materials the media sector has long argued should receive the same preferential treatment as educational and research imports.

“You have the government’s full support, because we know how important your work is to the sustenance of democracy,” the President told representatives of the Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO) and other leading industry bodies.

The closed-door meeting brought together a powerful cross-section of Nigeria’s media leadership, including:

– Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru, NPO President and Publisher of The Guardian

– Frank Aigbogun, NPAN Deputy President and Publisher of BusinessDay (who delivered the industry’s joint address)

– Aremo Olusegun Osoba (Vanguard)

– Sam Amuka (THISDAY/ARISE News)

– Prince Nduka Obaigbena (Channels Television)

– Dr John Momoh, Director-General of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA)

– Leaders of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), and Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), among others.

In his presentation, Aigbogun accused unnamed global tech platforms widely understood to include Google and Meta of systematically “scraping” Nigerian journalistic content, frequently breaching paywalls, to train artificial intelligence models without compensation.

He claimed these practices are depriving local media houses of up to 70% of their legitimate advertising and syndication revenue losses running into hundreds of millions of dollars annually while triggering widespread job losses across newsrooms.

Aigbogun called on the President to instruct the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to launch a formal investigation, in partnership with media stakeholders, into Big Tech’s alleged anti-competitive behaviour.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, told the gathering that preliminary engagements with major tech companies, including Meta and Google, are already in progress.

“The government will not allow anybody to come here, reap from our economy, and go away without giving back,” Idris said firmly.Vice President Kashim Shettima, together with several senior presidential aides, also attended the event.

The State House meeting follows an earlier January 2026 letter and public statement from the NPO highlighting the existential threat posed by unregulated digital platforms to Nigeria’s independent media ecosystem.

Industry observers view the President’s commitments as a potential turning point, offering both short-term cost relief through tariff adjustments and longer-term policy backing in the global push for fair revenue sharing between traditional media and dominant tech intermediaries.