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The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) has unveiled its maiden Special Recognition Awards (ASRA), designed to promote responsible advertising, strengthen compliance with industry standards and establish benchmarks for best practices.
Director-General of ARCON, Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo, who unveiled the initiative in Lagos, said the awards would recognise advertisers, brands, practitioners and organisations that had demonstrated strong compliance with advertising standards or contributed significantly to the development of Nigeria’s advertising ecosystem.
The maiden edition is scheduled for October 23 in Lagos.
Entries opened on August 31 and will close on September 13, while submission of supporting evidence will run from September 14 to 19. Voting is scheduled for September 20 to 27, with jury selection taking place between September 28 and October 2.
Fadolapo said ARCON decided to complement its regulatory and vetting responsibilities with a system that rewards practitioners and organisations that consistently comply with industry standards.
“While vetting, which is one of the physical elements of regulation, will be taken into consideration, there is also a need to recognise people who have complied with advertising standards to encourage other practitioners in the industry in a transparent process,” he said.
The ARCON boss said the recognition would extend beyond compliance with the Advertising Standards Panel’s requirements to individuals and organisations whose contributions had helped strengthen and expand the advertising industry.
Chairman of the ASRA Planning Committee, Yinka Adebayo, said the initiative was conceived to encourage responsible advertising practices, adherence to the vetting process and higher professional standards.
According to him, the awards will have four broad categories — Advertising Compliance Awards, Public Sector Recognition Awards, Private Sector Recognition Awards and Individual Recognition Awards.
Adebayo said the individual category would include Sectoral Frontrunner Awards for pioneers and professionals who had made significant contributions to specific sectors.
The Industry Lifetime Contribution Awards would recognise sustained contributions to the advertising industry, while the Distinguished Service Recognition Awards would honour individuals who had rendered exceptional service to the growth and professional development of the sector.
President of the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Lanre Adisa, welcomed the initiative, saying recognition of outstanding work could increase the industry’s visibility and encourage higher professional standards.
“One of the things that we always strive for is to create visibility for the industry, and one good way of doing that is to recognise good work,” Adisa said.
He pledged the support of AAAN and the Heads of Advertising Sectoral Groups for the initiative.
President of the Experiential Marketers Association of Nigeria (EXMAN), Tolulope Medebem, also backed the awards, saying recognition could help reinforce professional standards and reward commitment.
“Recognition is important in every industry because it does more than celebrate achievement. It reinforces standards, rewards commitment, and reminds us all of the values and behaviours we want to see more of across our profession,” she said.
Medebem said changing consumer behaviour, emerging platforms and increasing demands for accountability made it important to recognise practitioners and organisations whose work strengthened credibility and professionalism in the industry.
Other industry leaders at the unveiling included President of the Media Independent Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Brenda Nwangwu; Babs Fagade, representing the President of the Out-of-Home Advertising Agencies of Nigeria; and Group Media Manager, Tolaram, Adeola Amosun.
They expressed support for ASRA and commended ARCON for creating a platform to reward regulatory compliance, professional excellence and contributions to the growth of Nigeria’s advertising industry.
