Nigeria’s advertising industry is done with panel talk that ends when the lights come up. The sixth National Advertising Conference (NAC) is being built around one promise: leave Abuja with a regulatory model on paper, not another set of good intentions.
The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) briefed press last Tuesday at Léola Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, ahead of the three-day conference set for November 11–13, 2026, at the Abuja Continental Hotel. Theme: “Repositioning the Marketing Communications Industry for the Next Frontier.”
Two committees, two deliverables
NAC 2026 Planning Committee Chairman Tunji Adeyinka said a cross-functional committee has spent months drafting practical recommendations on regulating digital marketing and artificial intelligence. The plan is to run that work past ARCON and stakeholders before the conference, so delegates debate an actionable model rather than a theory.
A second committee is working on what the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement means for marketing communications, with a report and agreed action plan also targeted for the event.
Adeyinka framed the shift plainly: NAC is moving from a discussion platform to an advocacy vehicle. For anyone running paid media, influencer programmes or AI-assisted creative in Nigeria, that is the headline. Rules drafted by practitioners tend to be more workable than rules drafted around them.
Why this matters beyond Nigeria
Digital and AI regulation is arriving market by market, and the ad industry usually reacts late. Here you have a national regulator plus trade bodies co-authoring the framework ahead of enforcement. If it lands, it becomes a reference point for other African markets — and a template for how agencies can get a seat at the table instead of a compliance memo.
AfCFTA adds the growth angle. Cross-border trade rules reshape where D2C brands can ship, price and advertise. Agencies that understand the mechanics get to sell regional media plans, not single-market ones.
The lineup
The conference opens with a fireside chat featuring Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, Chairman of Access Holdings Plc, on navigating disruption. Other confirmed sessions and speakers include:
- Economic outlook panel: Ugochukwu “Ugodre” Obi-Chukwu (CEO, Nairametrics) and Olu Akanmu (Lagos Business School), on what Nigeria’s economy means for marketing and business planning.
- CMO Forum: Manpreet Singh (Group CMO, Tolaram Group), Idemudia Dima-Okojie (Head of Marketing, Mastercard West Africa) and Chioma Mbanugo (CMO, PZ Wilmar).
- Measurement: Patrick Gomes, COO of MEIL, on trends from the People Meter TV measurement rollout.
- “The Future is Female”: Brenda Nwagwu (President, MIPAN), Tolulope Medebem (President, EXMAN) and Dr. Bolajoko Bayo-Ajayi (President, NIMN).
- “Some Things Will Never Change”: veterans Lolu Akinwumi and ID Enang on the profession’s enduring principles.
Further sessions cover the creative economy, data protection and compliance, language and cultural representation in advertising, and shifting consumer behaviour. Tolaram Group is headline sponsor, with FPL Media and MediaReach OMD also backing the event.
The data argument marketers keep losing
One of the sharpest points came from Lanre Adisa, Chairman of HASG and President of AAAN, who urged the industry to measure its own economic contribution and use credible data to argue for recognition. That is a lesson for every marketing team: if you cannot quantify your contribution, someone else sets your budget.
MIPAN’s Brenda Nwagwu said AI simply cannot be ignored and called for a clear policy framework for responsible adoption. EXMAN’s Tolulope Medebem pushed for tighter collaboration between stakeholders, ARCON and the organising committee so conclusions turn into workable solutions.
What to do now
Representing ARCON Director-General Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo, Dr. (Mrs) Eme Akande said attendance reached roughly 500 participants last year, with a target of at least 700 this year.
If you operate in the market, three moves: audit how your team uses generative AI in creative and disclosure today, get someone from your agency or brand into the committee conversations before November, and start pulling the numbers that prove your marketing spend creates measurable economic value. Frameworks are easier to shape while they are still drafts.
Source: Brand Communicator
