The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Otunba Olusegun Runsewe

  • Runsewe appointed chairman Africa-China culture exchange society

    Director General National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) and President, Africa region of the world crafts council (WCC), Otunba Olusegun Runsewe, has been appointed chairman, Africa-China Exchange Society (ACCAES).

    Runsewe, who in two years has changed the narratives of Nigeria’s cultural economy and fostered strategic cultural exchange among African nations through multi-cultural marketing platforms, was chosen by the global body for his visionary leadership in fronting Africa Arts and Crafts as well as for driving an excellent cultural exchange platform between African countries and the People’s Republic of China.

    The ACCAES chairmanship position, which is for a duration of five years, is expected to help concretise and redefine the values of African Culture, Arts and Crafts in the eyes of the Chinese with intent to create not only a viable and thriving cultural market between Africa and China but substantially to increase the China tourism traffic to Africa.

    Speaking on the appointment, Runsewe commended the Africa China Exchange Society for finding him credible to improve the fortunes of the progressive body in Africa and promised not to disappoint the culture community in both countries.

    He explained his position as Africa Region President of World Craft Council is an added advantage and would provide the needed insight to navigate the huge cultural map of Africa and China.

    “As ever, I am determined to put my heart to this initiative and the vision behind the formation of the organization.

    “We have the products, the markets and will power to collaborate with China to bring the people of both continents together and empower them,” he said.

  • Events that shaped tourism in 2018

    Nigerian tourism Industry in 2018 made some progress even though it might not have been at the level desired by industry practitioners. Some of the key events in the sector this year include:

     Nigeria hosts UNWTO-CAF meeting 

    It was an opportunity for Nigeria to host Africa and the world and also showcase her tourism assets. The UNWTO-CAF meeting was held in June. The Information and Culture Ministry led by Alhaji Lai Mohammed put up a good performance to endear the country to the visitors.  The delegation to the 61st CAF  meeting was led by the Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Mr. Zurab Pololikashvili.  He described the meeting in Abuja as one of the most successful events of the global body.

    He said the UNWTO will leverage on the success of the meeting to promote Nigeria to become a top tourist destination in the world and commended the minister for putting Nigeria on the global tourism map.

    Lagos State tourism master plan

    The 2018 Akwaaba West African Travel Market offered the Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture led by Mr. Steve Ayorinde  the opportunity to unveil the Lagos Tourism master plan. It is a 15-year blueprint that would midwife the growth and development of Lagos into a major tourist destination Africa.

    Giving details of the master plan, Ayorinde said the Lagos State Government’s tourism master plan has adequately captured the potential of spiritual or religious tourism, and  that the primary concern of state  government was to ensure that the infrastructure and enabling environment to drive tourism development was fully in place. 

    Ayorinde said the master plan was geared toward showcasing the state as major tourism destination across the world. According him, the long term strategic master plan, which is being prepared by Messrs Ernst & Young, will focus on six sectors: Culture and Heritage, Film, Art and Entertainment, Business Tourism, Nature and Adventure, Medical and Wellness, Beach and Leisure.

    Ayorinde said: “If you look at the six sectors in broad terms, you will see that they have captured every area of tourism as far as business development and promotion are concerned and the interest of government is to develop the ecosystem of tourism, the practitioners, the tour operators everybody who has been involved over the years, will basically drive their businesses”.

    Abuja hosts NTIFE

    Nigeria Tourism Investors Forum and Exhibition, NTIFE, a national exhibition and conference organised by the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria, FTAN, was held in Abuja.

    Speaking ahead of the event, FTAN President, Alhaji Saleh Rabo, said NTIFE  promotes  domestic tourism and creates  a forum for the various associations and players in the industry to interact and network as well as showcase their products and services. He said this year’s edition will be enriching and fulfilling.

    Rabo revealed that this year’s event was  a notch higher and different from the past editions as the federation built on the gains from past editions .

     INAC opens Nigeria’s craft industry to the world 

    The National Council of Arts and Culture (NCAC) raised the bar in 2018 in the promotion of Nigerian arts and craft and its potential as a revenue earner. The parastatal’s expo was a departure from previous years.

    Held under the theme, Networking Nigerian Arts and Craft to the World, the week-long event was a first for the organisation as it moved from a national (and sometimes continental) event to one with participation from countries across continents, with African, Asian and American countries ably represented.

    NCAC, under the leadership of Otunba Olusegun Runsewe, made sure to put Nigeria’s best foot forward, not just with products displayed, but also with presentations at the numerous workshops held to educate and empower participants and guests that thronged the venue, the FCT Exhibition Pavilion next to the International Conference.

    It recognized the need to use culture as a tool of both diplomacy and tourism, the NCAC actively sought and got the participation of more than 20 countries including India, Pakistan and Bangladesh; China and Korea; Iran and Syria; Mexico, Venezuela, Trinidad & Tobago, Hungary and a host of African countries; Gambia, Mali, Burkina Faso and more to participate in the International Arts and Craft Expo (INAC).

    Runsewe said based on  the number of countries with embassies in Nigeria – well over a hundred – and the international airlines that do business in the country, there is no reason why the expo shouldn’t be bigger and better in coming years.

    SCOAN Youtube channel  hits one million subscribers

    Nigeria has become a major tourism hub for religious tourism in Africa. People from all over the world troop to Nigeria to find spiritual solutions to their problems. Pastor T.B. Joshua’s Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) is at the forefront in receiving these tourist visitors.  The church’s Youtube channel hit a subscriber base of one million in 2018.

    Another impressive figure also shows that number of views of the channel has hit 387 million.

    Emmanuel TV was launched on March 8, 2006 by Prophet T.B. Joshua, the Senior Pastor and founder of SCOAN as well as the Executive Producer of Emmanuel TV. The viewership cuts across a diverse audience in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North and South America.

  • ‘Parents, teach your children Nigerian culture’

    There is a correlation between a country’s development profile and its language and culture.

    That seems to be the position of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC).

    The council has advised Nigerian parents to lay the foundation for national greatness by teaching their children the Nigerian language and culture.

    Director-General of NCAC Otunba Olusegun Runsewe said a people without a culture can never make progress because they are like a people without identity.

    Runsewe was speaking in Abuja at a children’s quiz and essay competition on Nigerian culture featuring about 100 pupils drawn from different primary and secondary schools in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

    Runsewe said it is unfortunate that some schools don’t have culture clubs.

    He added that Edo State has insisted that every school must have a culture club which the agency has recommended to other states.

    He said, “There is no child that is not good at something, the child might be good in one area and not in the other, so we must check our strength in whatever we do with the youths.

    “I was very impressed on how our children were speaking their dialects today, which we know is not easy in our Nigeria of today.

    “Do you know before, if two Hausa men were having an argument and a traditional ruler passes, the quarrel ends because they will listen to the traditional ruler. These are our cultural values which we are losing. It is unfortunate that some schools don’t have cultural clubs. Edo state recently insisted that every school must have a cultural club which we are recommending to other states.

    “One thing you can never leave behind is your culture, a people without a culture can never make progress, it is like a people without identity. People talk of corruption and I have a solution, we went to visit EFCC with the management and I told the chairman that one of the reasons is when somebody steals money in our society, they call him and give him a title, are we not encouraging criminality?

    “This country used to be one of the greatest countries with no criminality and living together as one but now tribalism has changed it, we need to give orientation to our children when they are young. We need to build a better today for a greater tomorrow.”

    At the event, 14-year-old Lawrence Rita from Junior Secondary School Tudun Wada, Wuse Zone 4, said, “I started learning to speak my language from my mum at age eight and now I speak very well. To me, it is very good to speak your language because you might have a visitor at home and your mother wants to say something to you, in order for the visitor not to know what she is saying, she will use your dialect which is better.”

    Ten-year-old Egbuobi Lancelot, a Basic Five pupil of Solid Rock Academy Kubwa, Abuja told The Nation: “I learnt to speak Igbo from my mother, I love my culture, if you see an Igbo man walk pass, you will know because of the dressing, the way they speak, dance and eat. My school encourages me to speak my language a lot especially on cultural days.”

    Another student from Kubwa, 13-year-old Ahmadu Victor from Government Secondary School Kubwa said, “I speak my language fluently and I learned it from my mom, she always speaks it to us, now because of that, I am able to communicate with people of the same ethnic group and I like it because when I go to a new place and speak my language, I might find a person that speaks my language, identify with the person and make a new friend.

    “Although it is good to speak English since it is the official language of Nigeria which will be helpful when you go out but we need to preserve our own culture because whatever you do not preserve will go into extinction. To prevent it, kids need to be taught their languages. They could speak the language at home and learn English in school.”

  • Runsewe commends Edo on culture clubs in schools

    The Director General of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Olusegun Runsewe, has commended Edo State government for the patriotic initiative of introducing culture clubs in public schools in the state.

    Noting that this step will go a long way in stimulating the interest of the youths in the rich cultural heritage of the state and Nigeria at large, he said this move by Governor Obaseki of Edo State was not surprising in view of the cultural antecedents of the state.

    Runsewe pointed out that Edo State has a rich cultural history and tradition which are as old as the ancient Benin Kingdom and are  reflected in the various art forms such as sculptures, paintings, bronze works, dances, oral tradition, among others.

    The NCAC boss stated that most of the vices in Nigerian  society today are largely due to the deterioration of our traditional value system occasioned by the undue influence of foreign cultural values.

    He said that for Nigeria to make significant progress, we must return to our value system, adding that the best starting point is to consciously socialize our children in our core national values, using the family, the school and other agents of socialization.

    “I have been stressing the need for us to revive cultural education in the schools’ curricula and I presented a council memo on this during the 2017 National Council for Culture and Tourism in Jigawa,” Otunba said.

    Expressing  delight that Edo State governor, Chief Godwin Obaseki , has given practical expression to this call, he enjoined other governors to join this campaign to revive our fast-deteriorating cultural values.

    Runsewe stated that the NCAC under his leadership will work with the states to ensure that cultural clubs are not only fully established, but are also functional in all schools nationwide.

    He added that the council is engaging Nigerian youths on cultural revival through such programmes like National Culture Quiz Competition for Secondary Schools, Children’s Component of the National Festival for Arts and Culture (NAFEST).

    All these, he said, are geared towards inculcating in the youth, the appreciation of Nigerian Arts and Culture as well as building in them, innovative skills, healthy competition and inter-cultural exchanges that would foster national peace, unity and development.

    “When the youths are  properly groomed to internalize the attributes of our traditional values like love of neighbour, community spirit, personal integrity, hard-work, discipline and honesty, they will grow up to be responsible adults that can contribute meaningfully to national development,” Runsewe concluded.