The Nigeria Entertainment and Economic Roundtable (NEER) has announced plans to establish a ” one-stop Entertainment City” that would be a melting pot for showcasing Nigeria’s rich tourism, culture, arts and hospitality endowments.
Mr Chucks Akamadu, Director General of NEER, told journalists in Abuja on Wednesday that the new Entertainment City being proposed for the FCT would be a 24-hour hub that would attract visitors from across the world all year round.
“It’s a huge project,one-stop shop for its tourism, arts, culture and hospitality endowments.
“Anyone coming into the country would just go there and have a virtual tour of our diverse creativity, tourism assets and potentials.
“We are also looking at cinemas, art galleries, exhibition stands, statues of entertainment legends, bookshops, native kitchens, conference halls for public use, locations for movie productions and music video shots.
“It will also include, museums, parks, swimming pools, recreational sites and research corners; a whole lot is going to be going on there,” he said.
Akamadu said that NEER, an initiative of Afrocultour, along with other major stakeholders in the industry, would be unveiling a prototype of the Entertainment City which would be situated in the FCT.
According to him, the centre will be affiliated with hotels and airlines so that their visits to the Entertainment City will be made very easy for visitors and tourists.
“Giving dwindling oil prices the world over, it’s time for the government to make this sector a priority to grow the economy faster.
”As we speak,there’s more emphasis on mining and agriculture as major alternative sources of income without looking at the entertainment industry.
‘If you do an audit and compare Nigeria and then check countries like Brazil, USA, India and then do a comparative analysis, you would find that there’s a disparity.
“These countries have seen the oil in the entertainment industry and put them to use, so they’re making it big.
”COVID -19 in the meantime has allowed some businesses to thrive incredibly; one example is Netflix, which has grown in leaps and leaps and the industry is prepared to do better to task themselves to see that the industry does better under the situation,” he said.
Akamadu added an inter-ministerial project implementation committee, comprising representatives of Federal Ministries of Finance, Information and Culture, would soon be inaugurated, while NEER would shop for local and foreign investors. (NAN)