Afolayan Decries Poor Electricity at Film Village, Seeks Government Support

Nigerian filmmaker and entrepreneur, Kunle Afolayan, has appealed to the government for support after investing more than ₦8 billion of his personal funds in the KAP Film Village and Resort, saying inadequate electricity supply is making it increasingly difficult to sustain the facility.

Afolayan appealed during an interview with former Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, on the Nidacity podcast, which was released on YouTube.

According to the filmmaker, the facility has operated without public electricity since it was established, forcing the resort to rely heavily on diesel generators to power its operations.

He said the rising cost of diesel had become increasingly unsustainable and had at one point forced him to consider shutting down the resort.

“I believe so much in this country. We haven’t had electricity in KAP Village since the beginning. So we’ve been running on diesel,” Afolayan said.

He explained that although he had explored ways to reduce the resort’s dependence on diesel, the cost remained a major challenge.

Afolayan said he was now looking towards renewable energy as an alternative and had already invested about ₦200 million in a green-energy solution. However, he noted that the system was not yet sufficient to power the entire facility.

“So right now we’re talking to a lot of people to try and see how to do green energy. We did one last year, which cost about ₦200 million, but it’s not enough to power the entire resort,” he said.

Afolayan Calls for Government Support

The filmmaker said he had invested more than ₦8 billion of his personal funds into developing the film village and resort and believes government agencies should provide support to businesses making significant investments in the country's creative economy.

“And if we’ve managed to do that, I think there should be some sort of support, like from government agencies,” he said.

Afolayan also compared his investment with government grants received by some other businesses, arguing that his establishment had made a significant contribution to the economy but had not received comparable support.

“I know people are not even doing one quarter of what we’re doing, and they get a lot of grants from government,” he said.

Power Supply Remains a Challenge

The filmmaker's concerns highlight the wider challenges businesses face due to unreliable electricity and high energy costs in Nigeria.

For facilities such as the KAP Film Village and Resort, which require substantial electricity for accommodation, production, entertainment and other operations, unreliable public power can significantly increase operating expenses.

Afolayan's resort is part of his broader investment in Nigeria's creative and tourism industries, combining filmmaking infrastructure with hospitality and entertainment facilities.

As he continues to explore renewable energy solutions, the filmmaker is calling for greater government and institutional support for private investments that contribute to Nigeria's creative economy.

The appeal also renews the conversation around the role of infrastructure, particularly reliable electricity, in enabling Nigeria's creative businesses to grow and remain sustainable.