Participants of Beautiful Camp, a Jos Repertory Theatre (JRT) project supported by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Czech Aid were drilled on the importance of democracy and the role of the arts in the development of any economy.
Kickstarted in May, the camp comprising young artistes sourced from the six geopolitical zones of the country, introduced participants to Czech Republic’s Transition Project – on which the camp hinges around, as means of engendering democracy.
Facilitated by lawyer, Babatunde Towobola, he expounded on the importance of democracy, rule of law, human rights in maintaining human dignity.
“Promoting them and them and putting them into reality is an important priority of the goal of Czech Foreign Policy. As part of this goal, the Czech Republic promotes transition to democracy worldwide and shares its specific experience of social transformation and democracy building. Czech human rights and transition promotion policy reflects the conviction that there can be no human dignity without human rights. Human rights are the core value of open, inclusive and free societies.
Anchoring the second of the camp’s closed virtual sessions titled The Economy & the Arts, Media Entrepreneur, Dr Gregory Odutayo, presented an extensive analysis of the role of economy and its decisive relationship to the arts.
Whilst he demonstrated the enormous potentials of the arts in an economy of Nigeria’s size, the country is yet to tap into that yawning gap of opportunities.
“The creative economy all over the world encompasses a wide range of artistic and cultural activities. By my own estimation, the creative economy covers about 15 core areas – film, broadcasting, architecture, theatre, photography, literature and publishing, culinary arts, games, computer and software, tourism, advertising, events, fashion and lifestyle, visual arts and music.
“This vibrant sector is a significant job creator and is growing in importance.
The creative industry in Nigeria for instance is considered the second-largest employer of labour in the country, following agriculture,” said Odutayo.
Several virtual and in-person workshops are scheduled for the camp’s participants, which would culminate in a physical camp in Abuja, where alongside the dialogue and discussions, they will acquire skills that they will deploy in their various communities cross the nation.
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