Month: December 2023

By Taiye Olayemi

The city of Abuja was agog on Thursday when some cultural troupes from states across the federation displayed the beauty of Nigerian culture in dance and music.

This was when delegates from states visited the Nike Art Gallery and the Abuja Cultural Market as part of activities for the four-day National Stakeholders Conference on review of the 35 editions of the National Festival for Arts and Culture (NAFEST) in Abuja.

The two tourism sites accommodated locally-made crafts, art works, African fabrics, body ornaments, and many more arts fittings.

The programme was organised by the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that over 28 states participated in the conference.

They include Anambra, Ogun, Imo, Yobe, Lagos, Osun, Kwara, Imo, Edo, Taraba, Katsina, Kano and more.

Yobe and Anambra states’ cultural troupes and some other states had series of performances, exhibiting the Atilogwu energetic dance and more.

This excited the audience who were also educated in the course of the programme.

Some of the delegates who spoke with NAN said they were impressed with the quality of locally-made crafts displayed at the cultural market commended the effort of the Federal Government toward promoting tourism and culture.

Ahmed Atalla, Real Estate Developer from Egypt who visited the cultural market for the first time, said he had only come to purchase some of those locally-made crafts for his daughter who was currently schooling in the United States.

Atalla expressed his love for Nigerians, describing them as friendly and hospitable individuals.

“I am truly impressed with the quality of crafts and art works I have seen here, they are very neat and colourful. My daughter told me to get some of the materials for her and I have bought enough.

“I love Nigerian food because I love spicy food, especially egusi soup. I love Nigerians, Nigerian music, weather and the colourful culture. I have been having fun since two days that I came,” he said.

Also, Bernhard Schmit, a cultural consultant from Germany, said “Abuja is a beautiful city, the cultural market is also so attractive with the local design in place.”

Hajia Husna Ibrahim, Executive Director, Yobe State Council for Arts and Culture, noted that the visit to the cultural market and Nike Art Gallery was an eye opener for her and her team.

Ibrahim said she had come to the full realisation of the fact that culture remained the Nigerian oil that has not been properly tapped.

She, however, urged the Federal Government to increase the annual budgetary allocation to culture at the state and federal levels, to give room for improvements.

“Going forward, this visit will make significant difference in our operations when we return to our state, we have learnt a lot and we will put them to practise,” she said.

Chief Oluwasesan Fagbaye, Ogun State Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, said he would speak with the Governor to replicate such cultural market in the state.

Fagbaye said this would enable tourists gain access to local crafts while artistes market their crafts.

Nagombe Titus, Taraba State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, who was also impressed with the content of the cultural market, promised to ensure that Taraba state was well represented at the market to display their products.

Titus said “This is one of the most interesting moments I have seen since the inception of NAFEST. This conference has redirected our understanding and given us anticipation to develop our culture and arts.

“This has given us the opportunity to understand the synergy between tourism and culture.” (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

By Taiye Olayemi

Stakeholders in the arts and culture sectors have urged the Federal Government to merge the tourism and culture ministries.

They gave the recommendation in a communique issued after a four-day National Stakeholders Conference on review of the National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFEST),  on Thursday in Abuja.

The review process had state commissioners for tourism, arts and culture divided into eight committees by the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), organisers of the conference.

The committees are on : skills acquisition, cultural exchange and training, funding of the arts and culture sectors, establishment of cultural states.

Others are: one state one unique product, synergy between tourism and culture, e-marketing and review of 35 editions of NAFEST.

Dr Gerald Adewole, Chairman of the review committees, said  members resolved that tourism and culture should have a sole ministry because both were interwoven.

“The conference recommended that culture and tourism should remain as one ministry both at the federal and state levels to complement each other and contribute meaningfully to the diversification efforts of government and the Gross Domestic Products of the nation.

“Noting that culture provides the content for the development of tourism, the conference stressed that culture and tourism are intricately interwoven and inseparable,” he said.

Adewole noted that skills acquisition programmes especially for women, youths and the physically challenged through formal education, informal,  traditional skill transfer and apprenticeship was recommended in the communique.

He said that structured international exchange programmes and synergy between local and international non-governmental organisations was also recommended.

He noted that this was neccesary to engender unity in diversity, promote international diplomacy for peace, enhance cross fertilisation of ideas and promote international trade.

He said the conference  underscored the importance of cultural markets in the states as a means of employment and wealth creation, preservation of the rich cultural heritage of Nigeria and the establishment of one-stop-shop for cultural products.

“So, the establishment of cultural markets in the states to be domiciled in ministry of culture and tourism was strongly recommended.

“The conference identified sources of funding of the culture sector to include government, private sector, multinational organisations, development partners, donor agencies and charity organisations.

“It was therefore, recommended that these sources of funding should be explored by the states.

“We advise stakeholders like Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP), National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), RATTAWU and more to work with relevant cultural agencies of government in mounting sustained advocacy in order to push for the implementation of the National Endowment Fund for Arts.

“To achieve this, industry players must work together, and embark on programmes that will not only make them relevant, but indispensable stakeholders in the task of nation building,” he said.

Adewole noted that NAFEST should be sustained, strengthened and developed to the status of a festival that needs no introduction and which encompasses all year round activities.

According to him, this is because the festival remains a veritable platform for fostering national unity, peace, mutual understanding and cooperation among Nigerians, irrespective of ethnic group, culture, tribe or tongue.

“The festival should target different relevant audience such as diaspora community members of the academic community and the tourism sector.

“Programmes which can boost economic activities in the states should be introduced into the festival in a way that missing the hosting of the festival by a state would amount to missing a lifetime economic opportunity,” he said.

Earlier, Chief Olusegun Runsewe, Director-General, NCAC, appreciated the committee members for a job well done.

Runsewe promised to ensure that the  document of the communique gets to each state governor and the federal government for full implementation of all the resolutions.

He expressed optimism that the 2024 edition of NAFEST would be the biggest and most impactful. (NAN) (nannews.ng)