The Ekiti State Ministry of Arts, Culture and Tourism has intensified efforts to market the state’s arts, culture and tourism to the world.
This was the focus of the tour by the ministry to all the 16 local government areas of the state recently.
The state’s Commissioner for Arts, Culture and Tourism, Prof. Rasaki Ojo Bakare, said the products from these three areas of human endeavour have always served as veritable tools for economic diversification towards advancing the course of humanity and better the lot of the people.
Rasaki made this known during the tour which began on August 5 and ended on September 2, 2020, geared towards harnessing, promoting and marketing Ekiti arts, culture and tourism sites.
The commissioner and his team met with the chairmen, councillors, directors, as well as Community Development Officers of the different local government areas.
While informing his hosts about the giant strides of Dr John Kayode Fayemi’s administration in the area of culture and tourism development, he expressed displeasure at the grassroots neglect of the sector where enormous resources could be generated.
He stated that the sector, which is the third earner after telecommunications and oil, is too important to be neglected by the local government administrators.
Rasaki, who further emphasized that every local government across the state should begin a renaissance in the development of their various arts, culture and tourism products for the socio-economic survival of their people, urged the local government administrators to take practical steps at promoting religion tourism at the grassroots in order to be economically sustainable and for socio-economic development.
The commissioner therefore called on stakeholders to handle the state flagship festival, Ekiti State Festival of Arts and Culture (EKIFEST), with all seriousness, saying the festival is not a jamboree but rather a platform for talent hunt which is also capable of reducing crimes.
In his remarks, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Alhaji Ganiyu Ibrahim Titilope, sought the cooperation of the administrators to develop the sector, which, he said, would not only increase the revenue base of the state but also provide employment opportunity for the teeming unemployed youths.
In their various responses, the local government chairmen and their teams thanked the commissioner for the eye-opening meetings, while promising to commit resources to the development of the sector.
Meanwhile, a joint technical committee between the ministry and each local government is currently being formed to actualise the mission of the tour.