Any filmmaker who has spent real time in this industry knows what it used to mean to submit a film for classification. You would submit and then wait for weeks and sometimes months. While you wait, your schedule is falling apart while your project sat in a queue somewhere in Abuja. That experience has defined how most filmmakers in our industry have viewed the NFVCB for years, as an obstacle rather than a partner. Which is why what is happening under the current leadership of the board deserves to be acknowledged.
When you hear people say things change when the right person is in charge, Dr. Shaibu Husseini is exactly the kind of example they are referring to. He spent over 3 decades as a film and culture journalist with The Guardian Nigeria, served on Nigeria’s Oscar Selection Committee, votes at the International Golden Globes, and consults for the Berlin International Film Festival. He holds a First Class degree in Mass Communication, a Masters with Distinction, and a PhD, all built around film, media, and culture. This is not someone who needed to be briefed on what this industry looks like from the inside. He already knew, and you can see it in the decisions he is making.
Upon his appointment, the board he inherited had strained relationships with filmmakers and multiple court cases waiting to be resolved. His first position on that was simple: filmmakers are not supposed to be in court, and neither are regulators. He then announced that films would be classified within 6 to 48 hours, with the entire process completable from a filmmaker’s home or office. That target has since moved even further, with the board now working toward getting classification done in under 24 hours through full digitisation of operations. Online classification is being reintroduced and the Magpie verification system is being deployed to bring more transparency and compliance tracking into the process. Over 280,000 film materials are being digitised, and a 4 volume record of every film the board has classified since 1994 is being compiled for the first time.
Why is NFVCB is very crucial? The NFVCB plays an important role in classification of films. The board classifies films under one of the following ratings: G means the film is suitable for all ages. PG means parental guidance is advised, as some content may not be suitable for younger children without adult supervision. 12 or 12A means the film is suitable for viewers aged 12 and above, and children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult in the cinema. 15 means no one under 15 may watch the film in a cinema or purchase it. 18 means the film is strictly for adults, and may contain explicit violence, frequent coarse language, horror, or simulated sexual scenes. There is also an RE rating, which restricts a film to specially licensed premises for a specific adult audience. They are a legal framework that protects children, guides parents, and tells every cinema operator in the country exactly who is permitted to watch what. A film screened to the wrong audience is not just a moral failure; it is a criminal offence under Nigerian law.
Another important role is data collection. Dr. Husseini has made the point that Nollywood is globally recognised by name but is not getting the global recognition it deserves in terms of verifiable data, because digital distribution has made it easy for filmmakers to release films without going through classification, which means the official record consistently understates what this industry actually produces. In 2025, the NFVCB classified 1,185 films. In 2024 it was 1,088. Those are the numbers that foreign investors and international platforms work with when they sit down to assess Nollywood, not the figures we throw around informally. When what we claim and what the record shows are far apart, that distance becomes a credibility problem for every serious conversation we are trying to have about this industry on a global stage. It is part of the reason the board exists. Data is not just a technical matter; it is what makes an industry legible to the world.
Beyond the classification reforms, the NFVCB recently received a WHO World No Tobacco Day 2026 Award for banning the promotion of tobacco products in Nigerian films, making Nigeria the first country in Africa and only the second in the world after India to take that step in entertainment media. Every filmmaker in this industry should stop seeing classification as something done to them and start seeing it as something they contribute to. The industry we all say we are building will only be credible when its official record reflects its real size. Dr. Husseini is building that foundation. The least we can do is show up for it. Do you not think so?