Akwa Ibomites Gear Up For First Heritage Festival, Dec 15-17

With the maiden edition of the Akwa Ibom heritage festival tagged IbomFest 2016 underway, the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, has announced his support for the festival.
Billed to hold from December 15 to 17, the governor called on all would-be tourists to take opportunity of the festival to visit the state and experience the artistic, cultural and tourism opportunities that abound in the state.
Speaking at a press conference which held recently, Udom affirmed that the entire machinery of the state government was working in unity towards making sure that IbomFest 2016 would make indelible imprints in the consciousness of all guests.
Udom went on to state that the environment of Akwa Ibom State is remarkably clean and healthy while the peace and security status of the state speaks volumes.
“IbomFest, therefore, in the spirit of the Dakkada philosophy of our government, is positioned to contribute significantly towards the enhancement of the revenue base of the state and yield positive harvests to the people and government of the state.
“I believe that this event will promote foreign direct investment vis-à-vis foreign exchange from visiting tourists, opportunity for establishment of trade relations with states and countries that will participate in the event, employment generation through involvement of men and women, youth, artistes, arts/ crafts vendors, transporters, food vendors, hoteliers and others in all activities throughout its duration and finally opportunity for income generation for entire communities,” he said.
Also speaking, the Special Assistant to the Governor of Akwa Ibom State for Tourism and Development, Ini Edo, stated that the festival, with the theme: "Our Culture Beyond Borders", is in line with the desire of the governor to ensure that Akwa Ibom remains the choice destination for tourists and investors.
Edo added that this has spurred the pace of infrastructural and socio-economic development witnessed in Akwa Ibom State.
She also revealed that the event will help strengthen relationship between government, policy makers and private tourism operators within the state, the country and overseas towards further development of the abundant tourism potentials of the state.
The special assistant hoped that the event would encourage private sector initiatives in building of tourism infrastructure such as parks, tourists market/souvenir shops, sit outs, guided tours and others to compliment government’s effort.