GAPI Chairman Calls For Unity Among Music Stakeholders

The Chairman of the Ghana Association for Phonographic Industry (GAPI), Seth Amponsah, has called on Ghanaian music publishers to unite and work towards promoting Ghanaian music on the world music scene.

He also appealed to music publishers to strengthen their front and pursue strategies that would safeguard and protect their rights and interest.

According to Seth Amponsah, who is also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Easy Way Music Production, lack of unity and effective collaboration among the publishers has been a major drawback.

Speaking at a one day forum under the theme 'Going Global With Your Music- The Role of Effective Contract and Marketing' at GNAT Hall in Accra, Seth Amponsah advised music publishers and other music stakeholders to work tirelessly to protect and promote the image of the Ghana music industry to attract additional investments into the music sector.

He said even though Ghana's copyright laws has been acclaimed as one of the best in Africa, its weak implementation was preventing intellectual property owners from reaping the required benefits.

The chairman added that difficulty in enforcing laws against piracy of music in the country was creating a lot of problems for music producers and right owners.

He was of the view that lack of enforcement of copyright laws had empowered the pirates, who are better organised and more successful than the victims.

Seth Amponsah revealed that GAPI will soon initiate programmes to guarantee regular incomes for its members, apart from the annual royalties they receive from the collective society.

He, therefore, called on the government to help put effective structures in place to build and grow the music industry, adding that the industry needs to be adequately projected on the international scene.

The forum which was organised by GAPI and sponsored by Cultural Forum and Ministry of Tourism Culture and Arts,  provided participants with insight and knowledge about how music is created, effective leadership, marketing of musical works, artistes' management, copyright laws and other related laws, among others.

It was chaired by Seth Amponsah with Akunu Dake, Dr Poku Adusei, Oumar Diangne, Fred Kwame Frimpong, among others, as resource persons.

By George Clifford Owusu