Juliet Asante, the former Executive Secretary of the National Film Authority (NFA), has shared the immense challenges she encountered when she was appointed to regulate and promote Ghana’s film industry.
According to Asante, her journey began with a daunting task: establishing the NFA with only a paper mandate and no resources.
“With a paper in hand, but no office or money, I set out to recruit staff. With two staff members, we started the work. I took time to draft a strategy paper. But it became very clear, very quickly, that no one was interested and that this was going to be a very, very long road,” she revealed in a recent post.
She highlighted the severe financial constraints that made the task even more difficult. In the first year, the NFA was allocated only GH¢1,000 to run its operations.
“In the first year, we were given GH¢1,000 ($100) for the entire year. In the second year, we received GH¢10,000 (about $1,000 at the time). Neither I nor my staff received salaries for two years. We had to shoulder the cost of running a government office from our pockets. We worked from my home or the homes of other staff members,” she stated.
Asante further revealed that there was no guidance on how to establish a new government agency, making the process even more challenging.
Additionally, she had to navigate a difficult working relationship with an antagonistic board that made it clear she was not their preferred choice for the position.
