Otunba Olusegun Runsewe, Director-General, National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), has commended and celebrated the diplomatic community in Nigeria for their unwavering support for the council over the years.
This is contained in a statement on Thursday by Runsewe’s Media Aide, Mr Frank Meke.
Runsewe gave the commendation during a pre-INAC dinner with the diplomats in Abuja on Wednesday.
In a strategic bid to ensure that the 2021 International Arts and Crafts (INAC) Expo meets its desired objectives, NCAC had hosted the diplomatic community in Nigeria to a pre-INAC dinner in Abuja.
Runsewe explained that the purpose of the dinner outing was to celebrate the diplomatic community in Nigeria for their unwavering support to NCAC’s programmes.
He also intimated them of the council’s preparedness to host the 2021 edition of the culture, arts and crafts expo which will be held under the theme “Networking Nigerian Crafts to the World”.
The Director- General revealed that INAC Expo was initiated in 2018.
He said INAC was one of the council’s blue chip cultural tourism promotion offering aimed at recapturing, re- enacting and marketing the essence of the Nigerian Crafts Industry and it’s wealth creation potentials at national and international levels.
” Other strategic contents and interventions at each edition of INAC Expo, includes practical workshops and robust exhibitions geared towards reawakening and energising the cultural sector.
” These were done towards economic empowerment, information sharing, skills acquisition and overall socio economic integration of countries,” he said.
Runsewe, who doubles as the President, World Crafts Council (African Region) maintained, that INAC Expo has helped to sensitise investors on the need to invest in the Arts and Crafts sector.
According to him, this is a way of encouraging entrepreneurship and rural communities development which has attracted investors in line with the Social Development Goals ( SDG) agenda of the present administration.
Rumsewe said that the 14th edition of INAC Expo in 2021 will hold from Oct. 13 to Oct. 15, 2021 at the Sheraton Hotels and Towers.
He promised the different diplomatic communities that the 14th INAC will provide the needed platform for different countries to showcase their indigenous arts and crafts.
He said this would be done through exhibitions, personal and virtual interactions while savouring the fascinating cultural goldmine in Nigeria.
Runsewe presented gifts of appreciation to 25 countries and stakeholders that attended the event.
Members of the diplomatic community were also rewarded with various artistic gift items.
There were goodwill messages from Ambassadors of various countries and stakeholders in the culture and tourism sector. (NAN)
