Minister Wants Incorporation Of Local Culture In Carnivals

The Minister of Tour
ism, Mr Edem Duke, last Monday urged organisers of carnivals in Nigeria to showcase local culture in their events.
The Minister gave the advice while speaking with newsmen at the Lagos Easter Carnival at the Tafawa Balewa Square.
He said that carnivals should be about celebration of indigenous culture rather than promotion of what belonged to other people.
The Minister commended organisers of the Lagos carnival but urged them to put some more local content into the event especially in the area of costumes.
“We don’t want to be criticised for maintaining only the Carribean style. We must enhance the local cultural content” he said.
Duke advocated the setting up of a carnival institute in Lagos where people could be trained on organising carnivals and making costumes.
He said the institute, apart from helping to empower young people, would also enhance the development of the state’s tourism sector.
The Minister said there was the need to promote leisure events and expand the entertainment industry in view of their great potential.
He said the Federal Government was incorporating others areas of the creative industry such as fashion and painting, into its tourism agenda to create opportunities.
Duke said the recent rebasing of the nation’s GDP had shown how important the creative industry was to the economy.
The  Minister promised that the Federal Government would give the industry the necessary support to attain its full potential.