Arts significant employment avenue for Ghana’s youth – Minister

The Minister of Tourism Culture and Creative Arts, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare says the arts industry in Ghana is creating significant employment for the youth and contributing greatly towards the country's economic growth.

She said, many youth have taken full-time jobs in the arts due to prospects in the industry in the country.

“Many arts markets have sprung up in many parts of our country, this is the testimony of the number of young people who are being trained to produce creative arts works and who are earning a livelihood as a result. The days when the art of producing crafts was considered a hobby are long gone. Today it is a full time business, and in order to maximize our earnings from this, we should be ready to compete on the international market. We can only do this successfully when we produce to meet international standards, and only the best can meet international standards,” she said.

Speaking at this year’s regional Festival of Arts and Culture, at Prampram, in the Greater Accra Region, the minister said the festival was to “showcase our practical but creative culture and arts to the outside world. As we know, this Regional NAFAC 2016 is to select our groups of Excellence and peculiar cultural indigenous item and pictures of Socio-economic development prevailing at your respective Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies”.

The occasion was used to showcase the natural and economic capacity of the various assemblies of the region through photo exhibitions and local technology inventions.

Other government officials present at the festival included the Greater Accra Minister, Nii Laryea Afotey Agbo and the District Chief Executive for Ningo- Prampram, Hon. Al-Hajj SA Rhack Nartey.

For his part, the Greater Accra Minister, Nii Laryea Afotey Agbo said the event will improve the relationship between people and institutions to enhance innovations and  coordinate public and private support.

He said, it will also strengthen the ties between the study of art and culture and economic development at both Junior and Senior High levels of Ghana's education.

This he said, will establish a sustainable funding source for the art and cultural organizations, particularly for small and medium sized organizations.

The Greater Accra Regional Festival of Arts and Culture (GAFAC), serves as a prelude to the National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFAC), which is comes off from the 21st to 29th October 2016 at the Independence Square.

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By: Philip Nii Lartey/citifmonline.com/Ghana