President Mahama signs Ghana film Bill into law

President John Mahama has signed the Ghana film Bill into law.

The Development and Classification of Film Act (2006) was passed by Parliament in October 2016 after several years of deliberations and exhaustive stakeholder inputs.

The new law provides the legal framework for the production, regulation, nurturing and development of the local film industry.

It will also regulate the exhibition, distribution and marketing of films in the country.

The Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Mrs. Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare in a tweet on Friday morning made the announcement to the effect of the passage into law.

Some stakeholders who have embarked on various campaigns to impress upon parliament to expedite action on the bill believe the new law will deal with issues such as piracy and proliferation of foreign film content in the country.

Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare at an earlier press conference said, film is a key art form in modern society which reaches the majority of people regardless of age and background and thus, has a unique impact.

She said with successive governments having failed to reviewed the Cinematography Act of 1961, which formed the basis of the new Film Bill, the current government’s success is a demonstration of their preparedness to face-lift the industry.

“This we believe will curtail the unbridled importation of foreign films into our dear country.”

Per the law, new structures such as the National Film Authority and its Governing Board, the Film Development Fund as well as the Film Classification Committee are expected to be created and their activities streamlined to perform certain specific functions.