The National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has premiered “Poverty Cure”, a film documentary on building creative capacity and entrepreneurial mindset at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
The screening, held on Wednesday night, was part of events for the 2018 edition of the National Conference of the Faculty of Arts of the premier institution.
The conference, with the theme: “Globalisation, Sovereignty and Role of Humanities in the 21st century Africa’’, is holding from July 2 to 6.
Students from different departments, scholars and other stakeholders in the academia, within and outside Nigeria, were present at the screening.
Mr Adedayo Thomas, the Executive Director of the board, said the film premiere was part of the mentorship programme launched by the board for Theatre and other Creative Arts undergraduates in Nigerian Universities.
According to him, the premiere event titled, “Nurturing a Vibrant Film and Video Culture for Economic Prosperity’’, is to build entrepreneurial dispositions in young professionals as antidote to poverty in developing economies.
“As a key regulator in the Nigerian creative industry, the board has launched a mentorship programme to expose our potential filmmakers and entrepreneurs to practical knowledge of how the sector works.
“The premiere of this film is in line with our intentions to teach our undergraduates how to create value and prosperity for themselves because it is the creation of value that eradicates poverty.
“Besides the classroom knowledge, our undergraduates must be encouraged to look inward, develop themselves and follow their dreams instead of looking up to the government for everything.
“With the right mindset and knowledge, they can become creators of jobs and contribute to our GDP as soon as they leave school,’’ Thomas said.
He said the board was set to take the screening to other universities teaching Theatre Art, as part of its mentorship initiative.
In his remark, the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Prof. Mohammed Umar-Buratai, expressed delight over the mentorship initiative by the board.
He said that film screening was a timely motivation needed by the students, especially those who were about to graduate.
“This is a timely intervention by the NFVCB as it will bridge the gap between what our students learn in school and the practical realities of what they need to succeed in life.
“We hope to sustain this partnership in building those who can contribute towards societal building without relying on foreign aid or government,’’ he said.
During the event, there were stage presentations of drama, dance and ‘spoken word’ performance centered on patriotism, unity and peaceful co-existence among Nigerians.
The film documentary ‘Poverty Cure’, produced by Acton Institute in the Michigan, United States, highlights solutions to local and global poverty through proper understanding of human needs and the society they live in. (NAN)
