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As part of
activities geared towards a successful inception, the Society of
Non-Fiction Authors of Nigeria (SONFAN), held its first press
conference at their National secretariat on October 25, 2010.

SONFAN, the
umbrella body for anyone in Nigeria engaged in writing academic and
non-fiction works, was incorporated in earlier this year and began
operation on October 1.

On hand for the
SONFAN briefing were: the group’ss interim President Osa Egonwa; the
treasurer, Fidelia Omusopa; the Executive Director, Inyang Ekanem and
other officials.

About SONFAN

In his address, the
president (also a professor of Art and Art History and Human
Development at Delta State University, Abraka) outlined the reasons
behind the establishment of the association and its aims and objectives.

“There arose the
need to organise writers of academic and non-fiction works in Nigeria
into an umbrella organisation that would serve their common and
professional interests,” he said.

“This became even
more pressing because writers in other fields have been organised and
the strength of the organisation has become evident in the vibrancy of
not just the associations but also in the activities they engage in,”
he added.

“Consequently,
SONFAN was incorporated to nurture, advance and promote intellectual
endowments, aspirations and pursuits in Nigeria as well as protecting
the intellectual property rights of authors locally and
internationally, individually and in collaboration with governments,
agencies, institutions and international partners,” Egonwa declared.

The president
decried the ignorance of many writers about the importance of knowing
and protecting their rights, especially in relation to intellectual
properties.

He argued that it
is not enough to publish a book or release an album and be paid a token
amount of money. Monies in the form of royalties ought to accrue to the
creator each time his work is used as a copyright material, Egonwa
insisted. So the job of the association is to enlighten people that
once you are an author of a non-fictional works, you have rights.

Interactive session

As he fielded
questions from journalists, the SONFAN president delved into some of
the key problems the association plans to tackle. The first is what he
termed ‘The evil of photocopying’.

Photocopying is one
of the major ways many non-fiction and even fiction writers are cheated
out of the gains that should be credited to them from their works. “It
is only in Nigeria that people photocopy indiscriminately,” he stated.

“In developed
countries, the photocopying machines have already been programmed with
information about the writers. So the monetary gains from photocopying
a particular writer’s work(s) will be paid to the necessary
royalty-collecting organization,” he pointed out.

Egonwa counseled
that people should photocopy rightly by obtaining a licence. Plans are
also afoot to enlighten and garner support from the National
Universities Commission (NUC) and various universities across the
country to institute the proper procedures for photocopying.

Regarding the issue
of piracy, SONFAN informed journalists that they are also involved in
the fight; however the NCC (Nigeria Copyright Commission) is already at
the forefront of

this battle, Egonwa noted.

On their bid to
inform writers about their rights, the SONFAN president expressed
surprise that even some academics are not aware of the rights covering
their works. In this regard, the association is already making contacts
with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other
professional bodies in order to create awareness.

Egonwa also shed
more light on the association’s relationship with the Reproduction
Rights Society of Nigeria (REPRONIG), the body responsible for
protecting the rights of the Print Media. It is licensed by the
Nigerian Copyrights Commission to collect and distribute payments from
users of copyrighted works to their owners. However, with the inception
of SONFAN, REPRONIG after collecting these rights will be able to get
to the

relevant authors to pay them their royalties.

Contributions in
the form of grants from supporting organisations and members’ annual
dues, are some of the means by which the association will be funded.

The group called on
all non-fiction writers, teachers and journalists – because newspaper
articles also qualify as non-fiction – to join the association, as long
as they have about 150 pages of work(s) they have written.

Members of the public interested in joining the association or
finding out more about it, can visit the SONFAN National Secretariat at
Adedayo House, 36 Abeokuta Expressway, Cement Bus Stop, Lagos.