Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State, has promised that the state has finalized plans to host the most colorful edition of the National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFEST) set for November.
Sanwo-Olu made the pledge on Thursday when he met with a group from the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) led by Director-General Chief Segun Runsewe, the festival’s major organizers.
According to a statement published by Runsewe, the team was in the governor’s office to formally present a festival blueprint and assess the state’s readiness to host the festival in 2022.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), NAFEST is an annual cultural festival that unites contingents from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to a host state to showcase the nation’s unique cultural history in arts, crafts, and all.
Sanwo-Olu stated that a group from the state had visited NCAC for the first Pre-NAFEST meeting to connect and learn more about hosting the festival.
According to the assessment, the state government’s facilities needed to be improved in order to meet all of the NCAC’s standards.
He stated that this was done to ensure that the state not only hosted the largest and most colorful celebration, but also emerged as the fiesta’s overall victor.
He announced that Lagos state would stage a seven-day Pre-NAFEST event as a prologue to the festival.
He stated that the goal was to highlight the rich cultural history of all local government areas in the state, which would herald the EkoNAFEST 2022.
Runsewe responded by congratulating the Lagos State Government for securing the hosting rights for NAFEST 2022, which were hotly fought by three other states.
He stated that the festival, which is Nigeria’s premier cultural event, has served as a forum for the nation to connect through arts and culture.
He maintained that the festival, which is becoming richer, bigger, and better with each edition, will provide a solid platform for the state, which is the center of excellence, to bring its well-known elegance to bear in making the EKO a success.
Given the festival’s track record, NAFEST 2022 will be the best of its kind in its history.
“The purpose of our visit is for us to interact with you and brief you on the intricacies of hosting the festival, which will attract contingents from the 36 states of the federation and the FCT to Lagos State for seven days,” he explained.
He went on to say that the festival would have far-reaching benefits for Lagos citizens, as well as a favorable impact on the state’s economy in terms of hotel accommodations, transportation, small-scale enterprises, and vendors.
Runsewe stressed the importance of the state Local Organising Committee (LOC) collaborating closely with the National Organising Committee (NOC) to ensure effective coordination.
According to him, the governor’s wife, Mrs Ibijoke Sonwo-Olu, will be dubbed “Mama NAFEST 22” during the National Technical Stakeholders conference later this month.
“This would also provide her with a platform to host youngsters during Eko NAFEST 2022,” he added.