Nigerian music industry threatens with hunger strike to counter piracy

Copyright infringement is not our first association with Africa. Unjustly, it seems. Nigeria, a country faced with many problems despite it’s richness in natural resources, has Africa’s largest and liveliest market for infringed goods. Around 40% of locally produced music and as much as 80% of international music is sold as illegal CDs.

The Nigerian Music Industry Coalition says it is high time for action, as artists are “all dying in silence”. Despairing at their prospects, a number of Nigerian artists as well as music industry associations try to direct their president’s attention towards this problem, proposing some measures bordering the extreme.

The coalition has requested all broadcast platforms for a “no music day”. What’s more, it has indicated to organise a “mass hunger strike to make it clear to the world that the situation is not acceptable.”