Enugu State Government has called on the various ethnic nationalities to encourage the exchange of cultural values to foster peace and unity in the country.
The state Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Mr Ugonna Ibe gave the advice to mark this year’s ‘World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development’ on Friday in Enugu.
Ibe told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) the exchange cultural values among nationalities would bridge gaps, promote peace and unity in the society.
“If you know my culture and I know yours, we exchange it, we are learning from each other.
“If you are Hausa and I am able to learn your language and you learn mine. It makes communication easier.
“Once we communicate, we are able to dialogue on our differences. It is a natural thing we learn from each other,” Ibe said.
The commissioner said that a lot of talents could be developed among the youths through the exchange of cultural values.
According to him, it is all about youths’ mental and physical development, making it possible for them to know their origin as well as how to respect their elders.
He urged children to imbibe their culture because it was important they know what was forbidden and how to make local delicacies.
Ibe reminded them that culture could be used to address negative vices such as deployed to punish a perpetrator of crime.
“This is a retributive justice and with this type of cultural orientation, people should be able to refrain from crime,” Ibe advised.
He advised youths to shun cultism since it was not part of their culture.
He noted that the state government could not organize an elaborate programme to mark the event due to insecurity and poor adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols.
“This would have been a great opportunity for us to showcase what we have but there are so many challenges facing the country; so we are being cautious,” he said.
NAN reports that the General Conference of the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted the Universal Declaration on World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development in Paris on Nov. 2, 2001.
In 2002, the General Assembly of the United Nations declared May 21 to mark the event every year. (NAN)
