Tourism Minister seeks support for cultural development
Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, has appealed to the Regional House of Chiefs, Traditional Councils and other stakeholders to support the Ministry to galvanise cultural resources and sustain them.
She said in Ghana, cultural diversity flourishes within a framework of democratic pluralism, tolerance and mutual respect among people of various cultures.
Mrs Ofosu-Adjare was speaking at a durbar to climax the week-long celebration of the Homogeneous Festival on the theme: “My Culture Rocks,” in Accra.
The festival dubbed: “Homofest” 2016, was instituted two years ago by the Ministry of Tourism Culture and Creative Arts as part of measures to promote domestic tourism.
She said HOMOFEST was one of the vehicles for the Ministry to deepen domestic tourism but it was also a fillip upon, which to boost international tourism using the rich and diverse culture and the creative talents of the people.
She said the festival has become a domestic and international tourism and cultural product being advertised on the global electronic and print media landscape.
She said it was to foster unity among the Ga-Dangbes, in addition to creating awareness among the indigenes, while promoting their food, dance and music.
She said the third HOMOFEST was possible because of the strong partnership that existed between the Ministry and its Agencies and other stakeholders.
She said the Greater Accra Region is very much endowed with diverse rich and unique festivals, amongst them are Homowo, Asafotufiam, Ngmayem and Kpledjoo.
“These festivals exemplify the daily values, beliefs, norms and traditions of the people as they engage in different livelihood activities,” she added.
She said it was against this background that Ministry was using HOMOFEST as a tool to create jobs and income opportunities whilst promoting unity and conserving the cultural values.
“Results obtained from the evaluation of the 2013 and 2014 HOMOFEST celebrations indicated that significant jobs were created and income generated by businesses operating in the formal and informal sectors in the Region,” added.
The Minister said a unique characteristic of HOMOFEST was the reconstruction of the country’s historwhich was almost forgotten by younger generations, who seem to be obsessed with foreign cultures and values.
“Using HOMOFEST as a cultural tool, the Ministry and its partners have organised a series of activities to inculcate into the youth and communities our traditional values,” she said.
She also urged Ghanaians, especially the youth to be circumspect and eschew all manner of violence before and after the elections.
Source: GNA