Glamour trails NAFEST 2011 in Calabar

The  festival which is an annual event  organised by the National Council of Arts and Culture(NCAC), a parastatal of Federal Ministry of Culture , Tourism  and National Orientation, has gradually emerged   as  major platform for showcasing  Nigeria’s  rich  cultural heritage   and provided a competitive cultural platform for various states in Nigeria  to compete. Different   states […]

The  festival which is an annual event  organised by the National Council of Arts and Culture(NCAC), a parastatal of Federal Ministry of Culture , Tourism  and National Orientation, has gradually emerged   as  major platform for showcasing  Nigeria’s  rich  cultural heritage   and provided a competitive cultural platform for various states in Nigeria  to compete.

Different   states of the federation stormed Calabar with their colourful cultural apparels to the delight of all and sundry at the U.J. Esuene  Township Stadium as various  states put up their  possible best to outdo each other.

Also of note is the cultural drumming, dancing, costumes and languages all the visitors brought into Calabar, setting it ablaze in a cultural panorama.

Tradition and craft

The festival featured cultural displays like traditional by furnished apartments with the aim of developing and popularising indigenous building materials. There was also a Food Fair designed to upgrade, package and market Nigeria’s culinary traditions to the international community.

Penning traditions

There was also an essay competition at which children were challenged to write on “Culture as an Instrument for Peace and National Unity” intended to inculcate in children a sense of patriotism and appreciation of cultural values rather than imbibing unwholesome cultural influences.

Other events competed for at the event include: traditional wrestling, traditional music, drama, and book fair.

Nasarawa State, a north central state, for the fourth consecutive time emerged the overall winner in the various cultural competitions followed by Akwa Ibom State. Ogun and Bayelsa states jointly emerged third.

In the essay competition Nasarawa State came tops; Kwara State came second while Enugu and the Federal Capital Territory came third and fourth respectively.

In the junior category of traditional wrestling Bayelsa state came first while Ebonyi, Borno, Nasarawa came second, third and fourth respectively.

Ogun state came first in the intermediate wrestling category followed by Nasarawa state in the second position while Benue and Lagos states came third and fourth.

The Traditional by Furnished Apartment prize was won again by Nasarawa State, while Akwa Ibom,Ogun and the FCT emerged second, third and fourth respectively.

For the Nigerian Traditional music category,  Akwa Ibom State came first while the second, third and fourth positions went to Borno, Bayelsa and Benue states.

The Food Fair went to  Nasarawa State while the FCT, Ekiti and Bayelsa came second, third and fourth.

In drama competition, Benue state came first and Akwa Ibom, Ogun,Bayelsa followed in that order.

This year’s event with the theme “Nigerian Traditional music-A vehicle for economic transformation and unity” was declared open by President Goodluck Jonathan.

The president while declaring the event open noted that the host city, Calabar, being the first capital in Nigeria has become a major haven of culture and leisure and an acknowledged tourism destination and a show piece of what Africans can contribute to civilization.

The host governor, Liyel Imoke said that NAFEST has evolved into a veritable platform for projecting the beauty and tradition intrinsic in the rich and varied cultural heritage of the Nigerian people.

He said the event has achieved its objective of consolidating the Nigerian tradition and stimulating awareness of the inherent economic potential to harness national development, adding that the emergence of cultural industries has the potential to economically empower all people across the nation.

“Not only will we create wealth; we will also highlight the unique features of a united Nigeria to the rest of the world. Therefore, NAFEST serves as a window for the rest of the world to appreciate our distinct and diverse cultural heritage,” he said.

The Minister of Culture, Tourism and National Orientation Chief Edem Duke described the event as a “grand celebration of our cultural heritage” saying it brought together participants from all walks of life.

The event was formally declared closed on Friday by Governor Liyel Imoke who  urged all participating states to come for the forthcoming  2011 Calabar festival and carnival taking place in December.