The Governing Board of the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) has assured the Management and Staff of its commitment towards strengthening the Institute to effectively achieve its mandate.
Chairman of the Governing Board, Hon. Yusuf Galambi, made this known in his opening remarks during the inaugural meeting of the Board on Friday, July 20, 2018. He said the Board under his leadership will formulate policies that will engender change in the country.
According to him, if Nigeria must achieve her quest to develop, there is need to revive our cultural values. In his words, “there is no gainsaying the fact that the bane of our society today is the breakdown of our cherished cultural values of hard work, honesty, respect for elders and constituted authority, respect for the sanctity of human lives and good neighbourliness. Until we are able to revive our cultural values, our efforts at development will be in vain”.
He maintained that NICO as an agency of government has a critical and strategic role to play towards achieving cultural renaissance in the country with the Governing Board playing the critical role of formulating robust policies that will engender the desired change.
In his brief, the Acting Executive Secretary of NICO, Mr. Louis Eriomala, said the Institute’s programmes and projects are not limited to promoting Nigeria’s culture nationally but are also designed to achieve the country’s cultural diplomacy objectives.
Eriomala, who expressed NICO’s commitment to enhancing manpower capacity as a veritable strategy for professionalism in the culture sector, said the Institute will continue to research and document Nigeria’s rich history and culture as a way of preserving the nation’s rich cultural heritage as.
Further stressing Management’s resolve to also ensure that Nigerian children and youths have the right mental and cultural foundation through the institute’s various children and youth programmes, the NICO Boss was optimistic that with adequate funding, the lofty objectives of the institute will be achieved with significant socio-political and economic impact on the nation.
Other members of the Governing Board present at the meeting were Otumba Runsewe, Director-General, National Council for Arts and Culture; Dr. Ferdinand Anikwe, Director-General, Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization; Professor Habu Galadima, Nigerian Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies; Mrs Abimbola Dada, Nigerian Institute of International Affairs; Mrs Itodo Elizabeth, Federal Ministry of Education; Mr. Muhammed Nuhu, Centre for Management Development; Mrs. Memunat Idu-leh, Federal Ministry of Information and Culture) and Barrister Musa Kakamba, the National Institute for Cultural Orientation, who is Secretary to the Board.
Caleb Nor
Media Asst-Ag. ES
NICO HQ
Abuja-FCT