The comparison between us and Nigeria is such a stupid comparison to me - Majid Michel

Veteran Ghanaian actor Majid Michel has criticised comparisons between Ghana’s film industry and Nigeria’s Nollywood, arguing that the difference in population makes such assessments unfair.

Speaking during a recent interview with Y1079 FM in Accra, Michel said Nigeria’s larger population gives it a broader pool of potential actors, filmmakers and other professionals. He described comparisons that overlook that difference as “stupid”, saying the number of people working in an industry should be considered alongside the size of the country.

“The comparison between us and Nigeria is such a stupid comparison to me. If you have 50 children and I have 5 children, the possibility that you will have more criminals, doctors, good children and filmmakers than me is very high,” he said. Michel argued that Nigeria’s larger population makes it unsurprising that the country produces more filmmakers and other professionals than Ghana.

“We are less than 40 million in Ghana. Nigeria is over 200 million, almost 300 million. So how on earth would you compare?” he asked. “Why do they have more doctors than us? Mathematically, you should know why. So if Nigeria has more filmmakers than us, it only makes sense because they are way more than us.”

The actor also extended his argument beyond filmmaking, saying Ghana should not be assessed against more established countries without considering differences in their institutional development. “It is also unfair for us to compare ourselves with any other established nation in the world. When it comes to leadership, we are adolescent,” he said.

Michel maintained that countries with longer histories of established governance had more time to develop the systems supporting their progress. “There are countries that have been in leadership for over 300 years. They have built systems. We are way behind. So it is an unfair comparison,” he added.