INAC: the 11th international arts & crafts (INAC) expo 2018 officially opens
Oru Leonard with Sarah Domozu
Abuja: The 11th International Arts & Crafts (INAC) Expo 2018 holding at the Exhibition Pavilion Abuja, has been officially declared open Tuesday November 19, with the attendance of dignitaries across the globe.
The INAC Expo which holds from November 17th – 24th, is at present hosting more than 25 countries from different continents.
At the ceremony, the chairman of the occasion, Mr Nda Isaiah, who is the chairman and publisher of Leadership Newspapers, welcomed the Ambassadors present and other guests. He congratulated Otumba Otunsewe for organising INAC and for his seriousness in building Nigeria’s Arts and Culture. Mr. Nda noted that the Nigerian arts and culture has grown to a large extent and what was being showcased should not been seen as just design but as part of our culture being shown to the rest of the world.
He urged the Ambassadors to take advantage of the cultural resources, and the youths to take the creative sector advantage Nigeria has over most other countries serious.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said that the creative industry has become an intensive strategy sector to boost competitiveness, productivity, employment and sustainable growth in Nigeria and the world at large
The Minister who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Deaconess Grace Gekpe, disclosed that the Sector contributed 2.3 percent, about N239 billion to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product(GDP) in 2016 and also recorded growth of 3.72 per cent in 2016 and 4.72 in 2017.
Mr Lai noted that NCAC has sustained the tempo of cultural events over the years, which he commended the DG. He said that the Nigerian cultural brand is now acknowledged internationally and urged corporate bodies to invest in the creative sector for sustainable growth.
All the Ambassadors or their representatives present were in one voice that they were satisfied so far with the arrangement of the events, and they are participating with great expectations to network.
Earlier in his opening remark, the Director General, National Council for Arts and Culture, Otumba Olusegun Runsewe welcomed the guests to the official opening ceremony of the 11th Edition of the International Arts and Crafts (INAC) expo 2018.
Runsewe said he was glad to see the turn up by countries and states in Nigeria to partake and showcase their cultures in existence.
“I am delighted to note that this exposition has lived up to its expectation of bringing about regional integration, continental unity as well as unveiling the economic opportunities in arts and craft sector.
Until now, the exposition has been known as African Arts and Crafts (AFAC) Expo, but has been upgraded to an intercontinental status tagged International Arts and Crafts (INAC) Expo. The decision was taken due to the growing popularity and the need to reflect the global relevance which also brought about the theme for this year “Networking Nigerian Arts to the World” he said.
The exhibition will take one week full of fun, networking, sights and sounds, and it will end with the launch of Cultural Peace and Unity Day, with unity calabash.
