SPEECH BY THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND NATIONAL ORIENTATION, MOHAMMED IDRIS, fnipr, AT THE NATIONAL ADVERTISING CONFERENCE 2025 HELD AT THE ABUJA CONTINENTAL HOTEL, ABUJA, ON THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2025
Protocol:
It is indeed a great pleasure and privilege to be here today as the Chief Host of the 5th Edition of the National Advertising Conference. Let me first commend the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) under the dynamic leadership of Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo and other industry stakeholders for instituting this important conference as an annual event and sustaining it as a premier gathering of leaders in marketing, advertising, and communication in our country.
This conference has grown into a major platform for thought leadership, exhibitions, and networking across the diverse and vibrant ecosystem of marketing communication – encompassing professionals in marketing, advertising, media planning and buying, outdoor and experiential marketing, the broadcast sector, academia, regulators, journalists, government officials, students, and other key stakeholders.
This year’s theme — “Marketing Communication: Transforming Business and Creating Growth in Challenging Times” — is both timely and strategic. We live in an era where businesses must innovate not only to survive but to thrive amid economic headwinds, technological disruption, and shifting consumer behavior.
Marketing communication is at the centre of this transformation. It remains the bridge between creativity and commerce, between ideas and impact, and between perception and reality. As a tool of persuasion and nation-building, communication has never been more powerful — or more needed — than it is today.
Distinguished participants, our nation today faces challenges that are not only economic or security-related but also communicational. One of the gravest of these is the deliberate spread of misinformation — particularly the false and damaging narrative of Nigeria as a “violator of religious freedom.”
Let me state clearly and emphatically that this narrative is false. It is a distortion of our reality as a nation of diverse peoples and faiths, who have lived together peacefully for generations. Yes, Nigeria has faced security challenges, especially from terrorists and violent extremists, but these are not targeted at any religion or ethnic group. All Nigerians — Christians, Muslims, and people of other faiths — have suffered from the menace of terrorism and banditry.
The present administration under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, is fully committed to ending this scourge. We have invested deeply in strengthening our security architecture, rejigging the command and control structure, and injecting new ideas and fresh perspectives into the war against terror.
Only yesterday, the Chief of Army Staff briefed the media after he met with the President, providing encouraging updates on the significant gains recorded in just the past few days. These successes reaffirm our collective determination to secure every inch of our country and restore peace to our communities. In this context, marketing communication professionals have an enormous responsibility. You are not only storytellers for brands and businesses — you are also custodians of national perception and image.
When false narratives about Nigeria are spread — especially internationally — it is your creativity, strategy, and storytelling that can counterbalance them with truth, context, and compelling narratives of hope and progress.
We need a communication renaissance — one that emphasizes facts over fear, unity over division, and truth over propaganda. We must project Nigeria as it truly is: a diverse, dynamic, and resilient nation of hardworking people who coexist peacefully, aspire collectively, and strive daily to build a better society. Through integrated campaigns, digital storytelling, strategic partnerships, and value-based branding, our marketers can reshape how Nigeria is perceived globally — as a land of opportunity, innovation, and creativity, not of conflict or crisis.
Let me assure you that the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation will continue to partner with ARCON and all industry stakeholders to ensure that the advertising and communication ecosystem thrives in a regulated but enabling environment. We are retooling our public information machinery to align with the realities of the digital age — where truth must travel faster than falsehood, and where the Nigerian story must be told by Nigerians themselves.
The National Values Charter Framework, being implemented by the Ministry, is aimed at restoring the values of truth, integrity, patriotism, and national pride. These are values that must also underpin all marketing and communication practices in this country.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, in these challenging times, communication remains our strongest instrument — for business, for governance, and for nation-building. Let us therefore use it wisely, creatively, and responsibly.
Once again, I commend Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo and the entire team for their vision and leadership in convening this platform, and for their continued efforts in regulating and strengthening Nigeria’s advertising and marketing ecosystem. It is now my honour and privilege to declare the 5th National Advertising Conference 2025 open. Thank you, and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
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