THENATIONALBROADCASTINGCOMMISSION

The National Broadcasting Commision is a regulatory body in Nigeria

responsibleforoverseeingthebroadcastingindustry.Itregulatesandmonitors
broadcastmediatoensurecompliancewithstandardsandcodesofpractice.
The em ergence of the broadcast m edia can be traced back to the colonial era w hen
the British established N igerian Broadcasting Corporation (N BC) in 1933.
Duringthatera,NigerianBroadcastingCorporationwastheonlybroadcasterin the country
and w as m anaged by the governm ent, m ainly on education and propaganda
programming.In 1956,a stylised peacock was introduced to
representtheorganisation'sinnovationinColourBroadcasting.
It w as later changed to be know n as N ational Broadcasting Com m is sion (N BC)
under the Actofthe NationalAs sem bly by Act55 1999 and Act78 1999 after private
radio and television sprung up and started taking the broadcasting
industryonawiderlandscapeinthemid70s,80sand90s.
Today,theNationalBroadcastingCommisionstandsasthepowerhouseofal
BroadcastingcompaniesinNigeriawherebyithassetrulesandregulationsthat guidethem
andhastheabilitytodealwithanyheringBroadcastingcompanyor worker.

TheadministrativestructureoftheCommisioncovers,theBoard,theDirector– General,Board
ofManagementand expanded Board ofmanagement. For adm inistrative convenience, there
are 10 zonal of fices located in Abuja, Jos,
Maiduguri,Kaduna,Kano,Sokoto,Ibadan,Lagos,Benin,andUyotohandlethe
statutoryresponsibilitiesofthecommision on theeverincreasingbroadcast
mediainNigeria.EachofthezoneshasaZonalDirector.AcordingtotheNBC
website(2017),theCommision’sadministrativesetupisnow dividedintoeleven departm ents
and three units,nam ely,Directorate of M onitoring,Finance and
Acounts,Engineering/Technology,Human ResourcesManagement,Broadcast
PolicyResearch,InvestigationandEnforcement.
OtherdirectoratesareSecretarytotheCommision,OficeoftheDirectorGeneral –
PublicAfairs,DirectorGeneralOficeandInternalAuditDepartment.Thethree unitswithin
theDirectorGeneral’soficewere,PublicProcurement,Servicom, Anti–Coruption and
Transparency.Threedirectorates,Monitoring,Broadcast
PolicyandResearchaswelasInvestigationandEnforcementaregermanetothis study.

ROLESOFNBCINBROADCASTINGACTIVITIES
The National Broadcasting Commision (NBC) plays several key roles in
regulatingbroadcastingactivities:
BroadcastLicensing
This is the first m ajor statutory function of the NBC for the operation of a
broadcastmediainNigeria.AcordingtotheNBC,theprocedureforabroadcast
licensestartswithpurchase,procesingandconsiderationofapplicationsforthe ow nership
of radio and television stations including cable television services,
directsatelitebroadcastandanyothermedium ofbroadcasting.Applicantsmust
havealimitedliabilitycompanywiththeNigeria’sCorporateAfairsCommision, CAC.
ContentMonitoring
ContentMonitoring ofbroadcaststations in Nigeria is done through strict adherence
to program m e schedules containing local and foreign contents as contained in the
“Broadcasting Code’,published by the NBC.The Broadcasting
Codeguidestheoperationsofthelicensedbroadcaststation.

Sanctions
A sanction for broadcast stations by the N BC com es as a result of violation or
breach ofthe broadcasting code.Again M RA (2001)clas sified the sanctionsinto
revocationoflicence,shutingdownoforsealingupofastationortransmiter,
seizureorforfeitureofequipmentandsuspensionoflicence.Anothercategory
ofsanctionis,warningleter(s)toremedyabreachwithinagiventimefailing w hich a fine w
il l be im posed. The last category includes fines and stif fer
sanctionsfornotcomplyingwithearliersanctions.
Arbitration
Under this role, the NBC is expected to intervene in a profesional misunderstanding
between oramong broadcaststationsespecialy broadcast rights.
Spectrum Management:
NBC manages the alocation and use of radio frequency spectrum for
broadcastingpurposes,ensuringeficientutilizationandminimizinginterference
betweenbroadcaststations.

ConsumerProtection:
NBC protects the interests of consum ers by addres sing com plaints related to
broadcastingcontent,qualityofservice,andadherencetoregulations.
PromotionofLocalContent:
Thecommisionencouragestheproductionandbroadcastingoflocalcontentto
promoteNigerianculture,values,andlanguages.
TechnicalStandards:
NBCsetstechnicalstandardsforbroadcastingequipmentandinfrastructureto
ensurequalitytransmisionandreceptionofbroadcastsignals.
StakeholderEngagement:
NBC engages with stakeholders in the broadcasting industry, including
broadcasters,contentproducers,andthepublic,togatherfeedbackandaddres
concernsrelatedtobroadcastingactivities.
Astheworldkeepsevolving,andnew technologieskeepemerging.TheNational Broadcasting
Com m is sion ensures that it rem ains up to task in satisfying the
people'shungerfornewsandotherinformation.