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The Ekiti State Festival of Arts and Culture (EKIFEST) is making a retirn this year, woth Governor Kayode Fayemi announcing that the one week event will hold in December.
He also stated that the government was determined to establish Arts and Craft Village in Ado Ekiti with cluster outlets in some communities across the state.
EKIFEST is an annual event initiated in 2012 by the Fayemi administration to showcase Ekiti cultural heritage, discover talents and use arts and culture for economic development.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of Ekiti state Council for Arts and Culture Stakeholders’ Forum on Monday, the governor who was represented by Head of Service Hon Deji Ajayi said: “We are going to organise Ekiti State Festival of Arts and Culture in December this year to enhance our capacities in crafts, dancing, weaving and other vocational areas of arts.
“We should not forget to teach our children those values that will make Ekiti to remember their heritage and sustain our culture as a people”.
“The chairperson of the event, Erelu Bisi Fayemi in her remark noted that activities in the culture and Arts sector nosedived in the last four years.
“The Arts and culture industry is one of the area through which we believe we identify and develop talents and create opportunities for our teeming youths in the creative industry” she said.
While pledging her continuous support for creative industry in the state, Erelu Fayemi urged the stakeholders in the sector to collaborate with the government particularly the Council for Arts and Culture in the state for the development of the sector.
The Director General of the Ekiti State Council for Arts and Culture, Mr. Wale Ojo Lanre, assured that the government was committed to the promotion of all cultural festivals in the state to empower the people
for economic gains.
His words: “We are also going to partner Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), National Council for Arts and Culture and other national and international bodies to promote our arts and culture in Ekiti. Some of them will be enlisted as national festivals .
“We are also going to engage creative arts entrepreneurs and accomplished artistes of Ekiti origin to mentor our budding stars.
“All these are what Governor Kayode Fayemi is ready to do to promote our arts and culture industry and make it a force that can generate revenue for individuals and the state”
Guest speakers which included Professor Ishola Olomola, Professor Rasaki Bakare, and Dr Mike Adeoye in their different presentations harped on the need for consistency, sustainability in the promotion of arts and culture in the state.