Rivers Govt Plans Diversification Of Economy, Develop LGAs.
Barikui Felix, Port Harcourt
The Rivers State Government plans to diversify its economy and develop local government areas through deliberate investment in culture, tourism and the creative industry.
Dr. Israel Ngbuelo, the State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, stated this at a meeting with representatives of the state’s 23 local councils in Port Harcourt.
He said the state has over 42 tourist sites that are yet to be fully developed and harnessed. Development in tourism and the creative industry has the capacity to not only create revenue for the government and council areas but also reduce crime to its barest minimum.
Ngbuelo explained further that the meeting with the council representatives was to charge them back to their respective LGAs to form Culture and Tourism Committees to interface with the State Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
He also said part of the committee’s duties would be to identify various tourist sites in their LGAs and report them to the government for development and revamping.
The Culture and Tourism Commissioner said the ministry wants to leverage the state’s existing peace to boost the tourism and creative industry, thereby discouraging fun seekers from travelling out of the state, especially during festivities.
“His Excellency (Governor Siminalayi Fubara) not only has a passion for culture and tourism, but he has gone ahead to give us a mandate to identify various tourist sites in the state for development. So, we call you today as a ministry to bring your attention to what we intend to do.
“Today we want you to go back home and rethink because right now we are shifting from our over dependence on oil because most countries in the world are now doing well without oil. So we are out to build back and harness the cultural potentials of Rivers State, so we called you as partners to go back to your local governments to form culture and tourism committees that will give us feedback on areas we can build on as arts, culture and tourism sites,” Ngbuelo stated.
“For instance, there are a lot of tourist sites in Opobo including their beach that is yet to be developed, in Khana, we have the Ken Saro-Wiwa Memorial Park. So as a ministry we have looked at it and discovered that our local governments have the capacity to develop themselves because we want a situation whereby between now and December, you won’t have any need to come to Port Harcourt because your place should be beautiful and so busy and attractive to investors which will not only bring in foreign investment but also reduce crime and criminality to the barest minimum,” he added.
Ngbuelo further expressed optimism that with Landmark Group taking over the Port Harcourt Tourist Beach and the planned return of the state’s annual cultural carnival, CARNIRIV, the tourism and creative industry of the state will start booming again.
