The House Committee on Culture and Tourism, led by Hon. Muniru Abiodun Hakeem, member representing Oshodi-Isolo Federal Constituency of Lagos state, were at the Head Office of the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) on Monday, January 30th 2012, on an over-sight function visit.
Welcoming the lawmakers to the Institute in the Board Room of NICO Headquarters, the Executive Secretary, Dr. Barclays Foubiri Ayakoroma, gave a background of the Institute, informing that NICO is a product of the Federal Government of Nigeria and UNESCO, which declared 1988-1997 as the World Decade for Cultural Development, aimed at bringing culture to the fore in National Development.
He did a chronological run-down of the Institute’s chief executives, from inception to date, starting with the pioneer ES, noting that he is the fourth Executive Secretary since NICO was established.
He said apart from the Head Office and Corporate Headquarters is Abuja, the Institute has its Liaison office and Training School in Lagos, with six zonal offices spread across the six geopolitical zones in the country as follows: North-West zonal office in Katsina, Katsina state, North-Central zonal office in Ilorin, Kwara State, North-East zonal office in Yola, Adamawa State, South-South zonal office in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, South-West zonal office in Akure, Ondo State and South-East zonal office in Owerri, Imo State.
The ES then took the lawmakers on a detailed tour of the site plan of the Institute’s Training School complex in Kuje Area Council in Abuja, showing them various completed projects as well as the ones still under construction.
Dr. Ayakoroma informed the Committee Members that the major challenge hampering full development of the complex is the access road to the site and the need for a multipurpose auditorium.
The Institute, for now, runs it diploma and postgraduate programmes in Cultural Administration at the Lagos office situated at the National Theatre Annex, Iganmu.
Jonathan Nicodemus
Corporate Affairs