Culture

Minister commends Gov Mbah’s transformation of Enugu

Published

2 years ago

December 12, 2024

Minister Hannatu Musawa praises Governor Peter Mbah’s rapid transformation of Enugu, highlighting his contributions to tourism and creative industries.

Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy, Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa, has lauded Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu for his remarkable transformation of the state within his first year in office.

Musawa made the commendation during the flag-off of the ‘25 Days of Christmas Festival,’ which included the lighting of 500,000 lights at the Naira Triangle and Unity Park in Enugu.

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Musawa highlighted the Governor’s commitment to harnessing the full potential of Enugu’s tourism and creative industries, noting the city’s significant cultural and historical value to Nigeria.

“Gov Mbah is a rare gift to the nation. Enugu is the luckiest state to have him,” she said, praising his visionary leadership and rapid development initiatives.

The Minister expressed her gratitude for Enugu’s hospitality and warmth, adding that she was honoured to be part of the festival’s launch.

She also emphasized her Ministry’s interest in collaborating with the state to further develop its arts, culture, tourism, and creative potential in the coming year.

In his response, Governor Mbah thanked Musawa for her leadership in the creative sector and reiterated his commitment to the growth of Enugu’s tourism and creative industries.

He pointed out that Enugu was once the heart of Nollywood, and it has a rich history of being a key economic hub in Nigeria.

Mbah outlined plans to elevate the state’s tourism sector by developing sites like waterfalls and caves into major attractions.

He also mentioned the construction of a state-of-the-art International Conference Centre, which aims to make Enugu the conference capital of Africa.

During her visit, Musawa was taken on a tour of several key developments, including the still-under-construction International Conference Centre, the Enugu Digital Museum, Unity Park, and the Naira Triangle, which houses the newly launched Christmas Village.

The Enugu Christmas Festival, which runs from December 7th to 31st, 2024, promises a variety of family-friendly activities, including street carnivals, art exhibitions, Santa Storm, musical performances, and cultural displays.

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Culture

WAKE UP! Art Exhibition Returns for a Second Act

Published

2 weeks ago

August 27, 2026

Mariam Balogun

The contemporary art and photography exhibition “Wake Up!” is back again for a second edition.

Curated by Awele Onwordi, Wake Up! 2 exhibition pays homage to the Nigerian youth and burgeoning street culture which many of its contributing artists reference in their works.

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Titled “Young, Wild, Free”, the exhibition celebrates the creativity, resilience, freedom and cultural influence found in Nigerian youth.

Taking aim at societal issues and economic concerns, the exhibit reflects the youth and their refusal to compromise or bow despite all the challenges stacked against them while charting youth culture through art, music, fashion, skateboarding, photography and community.

The exhibition will be held, once again, at the Angel and Muse Gallery at 25 Sumbo Jibowu street off Ribadu Road off Awolowo Road in Ikoyi.

It will open on Saturday 5 September 2026 and will run until 11 September 2026
This second edition which focuses on celebrating, nurturing and exploring artistic practices rooted in youth and street culture will feature works from DENCITY and SUPERGLIDER HOUSE.

Exhibiting artists include Ajilore Kehinde – their work is deeply influenced by Nigerian street culture and works of other artists like Slawn, Peters Ejiro, etc, Chuka Onwordi – graphic designer who embodies themes of death, melancholy and beauty in his works, ZIDYEP – Abuja based creative whose works move between digital and physical spaces through art, graphic design and air brushing , Franklyn Okoye – graphic designer and artist whose works explore themes of identity and hyper-reality, Awele Onwordi – founder & curator of WAKE UP and multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans character art, creative logo design, album covers and more , Oluchi Kogolo – digital illustrator whose work explores street culture, personality and storytelling through a raw and playful visual style and Kozetuo Apeji – multidisciplinary artists who work explores experimental approaches to problem solving through both digital and traditional art forms.

Commenting on the exhibition in her curatorial statement, Awele noted that “despite economic instability, limited opportunities and socio-political challenges, Nigerian youth continue to shape culture through music, fashion, art, skateboarding, raves, photography and community.”

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Continuing and harping on the raison d’etre of the exhibition she said, “Young, Wild and Free exists to celebrate Nigerian youth while also creating a platform that supports and amplifies them.”