“The next NDC government will create and promote ‘The Black Star Experience’ as Ghana’s flagship culture, arts, and tourism brand to redefine and affirm our Ghanaian identity, attract investments, create new jobs, and increase tourism.
“The Black Star Experience will undertake a year-round celebration in all the major entertainment, artistic, and educational disciplines to include the celebration of the following.
“We will work with stakeholders to organize Pan African Month, Celebrating Heritage, History, and Diaspora Engagement, the Ghana Film, Festival and Awards Month, Ghana Music World, Culinary Month, Fashion and Textiles Month, Literacy/Literary Month,” Mr. John Dramani Mahama, NDC Presidential Candidate for 2024, stated in the party’s manifesto.
To this end, he noted that the NDC will partner with Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to institute creative festivals in honour of Ghanaian legends for recognition, celebration, and inspiration.
“We will introduce well-calendared Black Star Experience to inform planning and participation and encourage community-based cultural programming and participatory planning to foster ownership and sustainability of cultural initiatives,” former President Mahama stated and called on players in the industry to vote massively for him and NDC parliamentary candidates to enable him to form the next government to revamp the arts and culture industry.
On harnessing culture for economic growth, former President Mahama said the next NDC government will revive the Creative Arts Fund to provide sustainable financial support for start-ups and for ailing large, medium, and small creative enterprises.
“We will introduce the concept of “Cultural Villages” to showcase Ghana’s diverse culture and boost domestic arts and tourism; support the commercialization of cultural and artistic goods and services by facilitating financial literacy education among industry players.
“We will use digitalized experiences, including virtual reality versions of museums, galleries, memory spaces, and creative contents, to present Ghanaian culture, heritage recreational experiences, and brands.
“We will invest in capacity building, education, training, and sensitization in the culture, arts, and tourism sectors to empower young artists to contribute to the cultural and economic development of their communities and modernize existing Centres of National Culture into commercially viable performance spaces.
“We will construct new ones in the new regions; facilitate partnerships with international cultural organizations to promote knowledge exchange, collaboration, and exposure to diverse artistic practices; and partner with chiefs and other traditional authorities to promote the commercialization of heritage festivals,” he said.
The NDC therefore called on the electorate to vote massively for former President John Dramani Mahama, who occupies the 8th position on the presidential ballot paper, and all NDC parliamentary candidates to execute pragmatic policies to restore confidence and integrity in Ghana.
Source: modernghana.com
