NAFAC 2010 focus on skills training and job creation

For the first time in the history of the National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFAC), it will focus on skills training and job creation through the medium of arts and culture.
The idea is to tap the various potential in the industry to generate employment and create wealth.
This was disclosed by the acting Central Regional Director of the Center for National Culture, Mr. Emmanuel Akortsu at Dunkwa-On-Offin on Friday.
This year’s celebration marks the biennial celebration of NAFAC and it will come off in Tamale in November on the theme: Promoting unity, technology and wealth creation for a better Ghana.”
Mr. Akortsu further disclosed that this year’s festival would seek to honour creative groups and regions which have distinguished themselves and have contributed significantly to the promotion and development of arts and culture with particular reference to job and wealth creation.
According to him, the ministry of chieftaincy and culture is working feverishly towards making this year’s festival a unique one and has already inaugurated the national planning committee and regional committee at Tamale and still putting in much effort to make the celebration memorable.
The acting director stated that the celebration of NAFAC comes off on the heels of government’s agenda of empowering and investing in the youth to achieve the better Ghana agenda programme.
He said the celebration of the festival is always preceded by celebrations at the district and regional levels and even though the national festival is not conducted on competitive basis, the regional delegates marked their regional days with a lot of competitive spirit to project their tourism potential to attract investment.
He appealed to district, municipal and metropolitan assemblies and corporate bodies to support the festival since government budgetary allocation to the festival falls short of expectation.
The history of NAFAC dates back to the 1960s when industry players in the field of arts and culture decided to create a common platform to celebrate the arts and culture of Ghana’s history. This was to give meaning to the idea that a nation’s culture plays a significant role in its development. Today NAFAC has become one of the most celebrated national events bringing together all the ethnic groups in the country.