CBAAC, others close 8th int’l confab on Africa and the Diaspora

The challenges and opportunities confronting Africans and the people of African descent all over the world in the 21^st Century have assumed dimensions that should provoke a comprehensive review of salient aspects of Africa’s initial response to these challenges.

According to experts, Africans and people of African descent in the Diaspora are still victims of an increasingly globalized world. The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action acknowledged people of African descent as victims who continue to suffer racial discrimination consequent upon slavery.

Africans and Africans in the Diaspora, the experts posit, have yet to intellectually engage the challenges posed by new developments in the new millennium eleven years after its commencement.

The continuing pattern of unequal relationship between Africa, with its Diaspora, on the one hand and the West on the other, found resonance in the declaration by the United Nations of Year 2011 as the International Year of the People of African Descent.

It was to respond to the issues of under development in Africa and redouble efforts to fight against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance that affect people of African descent everywhere. The main objective of this declaration is to raise an awareness of the challenges facing people of African descent and generate proposals for solutions to confront these compounded challenges.

It was therefore, against the foregoing that the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC), in conjunction with E Desmond Lee Endowed Professorship of African/ African-American Studies and the International Studies Program at the University of Missouri, St. Louis and the Pan African Strategic and Policy Research Group (PANAFSTRAG) Nigeria, organized a 3-day International Conference, with the theme: Africa and the Diaspora in the new Millennium, at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, United States, from October 30 through to November 1.

The conference set for itself the following objectives: to re-assess Pan Africanism in the New Millennium; to acknowledge the contributions of Africa and Black Diaspora to modern society; to recognize Diaspora communities; o evaluate and examine the production of knowledge, cultural goods and market, and to review trans-national crossings throughout the ages.

At the end of highly engaging deliberations generated by about sixty academic papers the following observations and recommendations were made:  That many African states did not fully appreciate or appropriate the opportunities offered by the United Nations Declaration of 2011 as the International Year of the People of African Descent to engage the challenges of development; That distinctions made between social science in Africa and African Social     Science have not been adequately reflected in proposing scholarly solutions to the problem of racism, discrimination and under development in Africa; That the contributions of public intellectuals in Africa and the Diaspora have not been adequately recognized as basis for reconstructing transformational states and societies.

Other observations include: That despite the opportunities provided by the Declaration of the Global Africa Diaspora, 2012, many member countries of the African Union have not shown required commitment to the ratification of the protocol on the Diaspora Economic Communities and the management of remittances to Africa; That the cultural, literary and artistic heritage of Africa is capable of providing common trends in African humanistic experiences, translate African values to higher heights and provide a space for Africa’s offering at the global intellectual market; That there is a need to remove the monolingual borders inherited from colonialism by consciously promoting and encouraging the cross teaching and use of various African languages.

And lastly: That transnational movements and values of African origin have benefited from the global expansion in communication and transportation; That Pan Africanism as presently understood by this generation of African leaders has limited capacity to play the role of a liberating ideology and provide a response to racism, discrimination and intolerance; That the African Diaspora extends to the Middle East, South Asia and not just the New World; That Africa’s new and old Diasporas have not been adequately integrated to be able to present a common front on essentially African affairs.

The conference, therefore, issued a six-point recommendation which included: That declarations, reports of working groups and protocols affecting Africans and people of African descent in the Diaspora should be given the widest publicity and circulation to ensure awareness, promote interest and inclusiveness; That activist scholars, civil society organizations and the press should critically re-engage African governments to make them proactive, transformational and accountable to their people. Scholars should deepen their knowledge about typically African epistemology and employ African systems of thought to provide explanations for Social Science issues of development and democracy in Africa; That African intellectuals, research institutes, cultural agencies, public intellectuals, mass media and engaged individuals should design an Afrocentric model for the creation of a supra national consciousness based on the intrinsic values of African culture to provide a counter discourse to the existing ideology of racial inequality, stigmatization and intolerance.

Other recommendations are: That in view of the failure of existing methodology, the UN should bring activities associated with the declaration of 2011 as the International Year of People of African Descent and decade following, away from the cozy conference rooms to the public domains in Africa and the Diaspora;

That existing linkages between Africa institutions and their counterparts in the Diaspora should be strengthened and deepened to promote a better understanding of African social realities; That the African Union should create opportunities for Africa and Diaspora cooperation to address contemporary problems of HIV/AIDS, public health challenges and youth empowerment, gender matters and not just money remittances.

The Keynote address titled: Sustaining the Continuum of African Civilization in Brazil as an Instrument of Afro-Brazilian Struggle and Emancipation, was delivered by Mrs. Silvany Euclenio Silva, Secretary for Policies on Traditional Communities of the Special Secretariat for the Promotion of Racial Equality (SEPPIR), representing Ms. Luiza Barros, Honourable Minister of SEPPIR Brazil.

The opening events included music by Songs of Africa Ensemble. Panel sessions held on Tuesday 30 and Wednesday, October 31. Topics at the plenary include: “The Future is now: Connecting African Worlds,” and “African Women’s Movements and the push for Democracy and Good Governance: A Test of the Efficacy of Multicultural Feminist Theory,” among others. The closing sessions took place Thursday, November 1 with a reception, after a morning excursion.

Notable scholars and personalities in attendance include:  High Chief Edem Duke, Minister, Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation; Mr. Charlie A. Dooley, St. Louis County Executive;  Professor Thomas George, Chancellor of the University of Missouri–St. Louis; Professor Joel Glassman, the Associate Provost for Academic Affairs and Director of the International Studies and Programmes, University of Missouri-St. Louis; Professor Wande Abimbola, (Awise Agbaye) Ifa Heritage Institute, Oyo, Nigeria; Professor. Niyi Coker, E. Desmond Lee Endowed Professor of African/African-American Studies, University of Missouri – St. Louis; Matlotleng Patrick Matlou, PhD, former Executive Director, Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA), Pretoria, South Africa.

Others include: Professor L. Adele Jinadu, PhD, Department of Political Science, University of Lagos; Professor Unionmwan Edebiri, OFR, PhD, Department of Foreign Languages, University of Benin, Benin City; Professor Olu Obafemi, FNAL, Director of Research,  National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, near Jos; Marta M. Maffia, Dra., National Research Council (CONICET) and Faculty of Natural Sciences and Museum, Department of Ethnography, National University of La Plata, La Plata, Argentina; Omofolabo Ajayi-Soyinka, PhD, Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Department of Theatre, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.

As well as: El Hadji Samba Amadou Diallo, PhD, African and African American Studies Program, Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri; Mr. Martin Adaji, Artistic Director, National Troupe of Nigeria; Mr. Kabir Yusuff, General Manager, National Theatre of Nigeria (NTN); Mr. Muku Abdullah, Director General, National Gallery of Arts (NGA), Nigeria; and Eva I. Shaw-Taylor, PhD, The Institute for Diasporan & African Culture (TIDAC), Brooklyn, New York, United States.

Tourism ministers cite complicated visas processes as barriers to travel growth

Ministers of Tourism gathered in London for the just-concluded 6th United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)/ World Tourism Market (WTM) Ministers’ Summit have concluded that the continued challenges posed to growth of travel and tourism remains the complicated visas processes and policies which, according to them, limit air connectivity.

Ministers and representatives from major tour operators and airlines further called for increased intra-governmental cooperation and support from the highest levels of government to break such barriers.

The coordination between tourism and other governmental portfolios, home affairs, finance, transport or infrastructure, was unanimously pointed out as key to addressing current obstacles to stronger tourism growth during the Summit dedicated to “Open Borders and Open Skies – Breaking Barriers to Travel and Tourism”.

Facilitating visa procedures and promoting policies that improve air capacity is only possible if there is political commitment at the highest level and cooperation across cabinet agreed the over 70 Tourism Ministers attending the Summit.

According to UNWTO research, between 2010 and 2012 over 40 countries made significant changes to their visa policies, facilitating travel from “visa required” to “visa on arrival,” “eVisa,” or “no visa.” Yet, visa facilitation is still a major obstacle to tourism development.

“Our main message is clear: lengthy, expensive and complicated visa procedures and policies which limit the development of air travel are obstacles to the continued expansion of travel and tourism. Removing them will stimulate demand, increase exports, grow the economy and create jobs,” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.

Fiona Jeffery, Reed Travel Exhibitions Director, World Travel Market said: “2012 is a breakthrough year for international tourism with at least one billion arrivals expected, but there is still room for us to grow. Addressing issues such as visas and air taxes will help, and it appears the global condemnation of the UK’s APD will not go away.”

Looking ahead, Ministers agreed technology could play a leading role in transforming visa processes but that important efforts were required to accelerate the implementation of e-visas, a powerful measure considering the growing number of tourists booking online.

With more than half of global international arrivals travelling by plane, policies which constrain air capacity development and unbalanced taxation on travel and tourism, particularly on aviation, were also pointed out as key obstacles to tourism growth.

“This is the sixth UNWTO Misters Summit at WTM, and the event continues to go from strength to strength. Our message remains that tourism is a vitally important sector on a global scale, and we want to facilitate its continued growth for the good of all,” Rifai concluded.

Rifai assures on preparations ahead 94th UNWTO general assembly meeting

Preparations for the forthcoming United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly to be co-hosted by Zimbabwe and Zambia are on track, UNWTO Secretary-General Dr Taleb Rifai has said.

The UNWTO general assembly will be held in Victoria Falls in August next year. In his remarks at the just ended 94th UNWTO Executive Council Session at the Mexican resort town of Cempeche, Dr Rifai called for increased marketing of the event to ensure maximum participation.

Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Walter Mzembi who was leading the Zimbabwean delegation at the meeting expressed his gratitude over the latest developments.

He, however, could not give more details before meeting President Mugabe.

“I will be meeting with His Excellency to share special resolutions on the policy thrust of the General Assembly and aspects of UNWTO business from the recently concluded meetings.”

Minister Mzembi said there was, however, expectation from the Africa Commission that this General Assembly should table the African agenda on travel and tourism, the challenges besetting it, and proffer solutions that would enhance the continent’s participation in global tourism.

Tourist arrivals are expected to peak at one billion and generate US$1.5 trillion income by year-end.

“Africa’s market share is currently a mere four percent of this lucrative sector, which employs 250 million people worldwide, and enjoys nine percent of global domestic product.”

A team of UNWTO inspectors recently visited Zimbabwe and Zambia to check on the preparations.

“The next round of inspections will take place in January 2013, followed by a Tri-Lateral Meeting at Fitur, in Spain at the end of January.”

Minister Mzembi said the UNWTO would receive a very comprehensive report on the preparations at its 95th Executive Council Session in Serbia in May next year.

This would be the last executive meeting held outside the general assembly venue of the Victoria Falls in August next year.

Vice President Joice Mujuru, who leads an inter-ministerial committee on Zimbabwe’s hosting of the event, recently visited Victoria Falls to check on progress on the preparations for the event.

Flood, insecurity deepen Argungu Fishing Festival’s woes

Annually a top tourism draw to the people and government of Kebbi State, the unprecedented incidents of flooding that wreaked havoc across the country recently, may have taken a toll on Kebbi further compounded the already precarious state of the most prominent fishing and cultural festival in the region.

The Argungu Fishing and Cultural Festival which for three year running has been plagued by cancellations largely brought on by dearth of funding from the corporate sector that had backboned the festival for years now, has suffered the flooding blow which now threatens next year’s edition following the yet another cancellation of this year’s event last March.

Although observers believe the reluctance on the part of the corporate sector to provide the much-needed funding to drive the event, they also posit that this situation was hinged largely on the general level of insecurity in the north of the country which may put both the tourists and general public at risk.

Recently, Custodian of the Matan Fada River, (Sarkin Ruwa) Alhaji Hussaini Makwashe, raised an alarm over the deplorable state of the Matan River itself, which is the major venue of the festival.

According to Makwashe, the structures and facilities at the river were rotting away from initial government neglect and now the floods which also hit the Argungu community in Kebbi State, as a result of the river breaking its banks and destroying many properties located by the river that also served as event centres for the festival.

It therefore remains to be seen the extent of government response at reviving a festival which draws hundreds of thousands of visitors and competitors alike annually from the West African sun-region and overseas in search of the biggest catch.

Having already attained international status, the festival began in 1934, to mark the end of the centuries old hostilities between the Sokoto Caliphate and the Kebbi Kingdom. The two empires had fought for centuries, and the conflicts only ceased with the arrival of the British.

The Argungu fishing festival is the culmination of a four-day cultural event which also attracts Heads of States and Governments in West Africa, first class traditional rulers from neighbouring Niger, Benin Republic, and Chad as well as Emirs and Chiefs from across the country; members of the diplomatic corps; captains of industries; top government functionaries; tourism aficionados and enthusiasts to the Land of Kanta.

The Matan Fada River though small is restricted to fishing all-year and hence, is well stocked with fish for the fishing festival.

Resilient travellers boost UNWTO data as WTTC firms with 2012 forecast

Global travellers continue to show their resilience as international tourist arrivals grew by 4 per cent between January and August 2012 compared to the same period of 2011, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer.

On its part, the world’s largest private sector umbrella travel and tourism body, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), has predicted that the industry in 2012 will be broadly in line with expectations it had set at the beginning of the year.

With a record 705 million tourists up to August 2012, UNWTO remains confident that one billion international tourists will have travelled the world by the end of the year.

“This growth is a very positive result in view of the global economic situation. We must remain cautious, however, as we have also observed some weaker months during the year, a trend that might return in the remainder of the year,” said UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai.

Remarkably, the United Nations body said destinations in Sub-Saharan Africa including Nigeria (+4 per cent) continued to show very positive results, consolidating the good growth rates of previous years, just as it further noted that the +6 per cent growth of the rest of Africa, is clearly reflected in the results of North Africa (+10 per cent), as is the rebound of Egypt in the performance of the Middle East (-1 per cent as compared to a decline of 7 per cent in 2011).

Growth slowed down in June (+2.7 per cent) and July (+1.4 per cent) as compared the first five months of the year (average of 5 per cent), yet recovered in August at 4 per cent, a positive result for the month that accounts for the highest volume of international tourism in the year.

UNWTO expects growth of 3 per cent to 4 per cent for the year as a whole, while forecasting a slight slowdown in demand for 2013 (+2 per cent to 4 per cent).

Emerging economies (+5 per cent) have clearly regained the lead in international tourism arrivals as compared to advanced ones (+4 per cent).

By regions, growth was stronger in Asia and the Pacific and Africa, followed by the Americas and Europe. The Middle East continues to show signs of recovery, with particularly promising results in Egypt.

Meanwhile, in an update of forecasts made at the beginning of the year, WTTC predicts travel and tourism growth globally of 2.7 per cent, only slightly downgraded from the 2.8 per cent that was expected for the industry at the beginning of the year. The main reasons for the marginal downgrade are that WTTC now expects world GDP growth to be 2.3 per cent in 2012, down 0.2 per cent from the beginning of the year, and the continuing problems in the eurozone.

South Korea’s annual travel and tourism GDP growth of 13.2 per cent is the highest of any G20 country, while Italy is currently showing the weakest performance of any G20 country, with a 2.8 per cent decrease in travel and tourism GDP now expected in 2012.

Other highlights of the report include that; the volume of travel and tourism movements has been positive so far in 2012 and has exceeded expectations from the start of the year. International tourist arrivals have grown 4.9 per cent in the year from January to June, airline passenger traffic is up 6.8 per cent and hotel occupancy rates are up in many markets apart from Southern Europe.

It also predicted that the best-performing countries for international tourist arrivals remain those rebounding from difficult times in 2010 and 2011. In the period from January to June this year, Japan’s arrival figures were up 44.4 per cent, Tunisia was up 41.7 per cent and Egypt was up 23.4 per cent. South Korea, where visitors from its main market of Japan stayed home after the tsunami, has also been strong this year with arrivals figures increasing 21.8 per cent year to date.

And lastly that although international visitor arrival figures are looking robust, there is evidence of declines both in terms of average spend and hotel average daily room rates in some regions, notably Europe and Northern and Southern Africa.

Russia to simplify visa regulations ahead 2018 World Cup

Russia law makers would considering more simplified visa regulations for foreigners related to the 2018 World Cup, a travel industry union said Sunday.

A bill has been presented to the State Duma, or lower house of the parliament for the visa-free discussion, Russian Union of the Travel Industry said.

The bill allowed foreign citizens involving in organizing and conducting the World Cup and the 2017 Confederations’ Cup to skip the consular procedures and fees related to the visas, Yury Barzykin, Vice President of the union told local media.

Meanwhile, certain kinds of foreigners, especially those participating in the games, could enter Russia during the competition period without getting a visa if certain documents are provided in advance, the bill suggested.

Moreover, the bill would give certain foreigners the right of free travels between Russian host cities of the World Cup. For example, a ticket to a game of the World Cup could be taken as a “travel document,” Interfax news agency quoted Barzykin as saying.

The bill, if approved by the State Duma, would help boost the sports tourism in Russia during the World Cup years and encourage more sports fans and travelers to visit the country, Barzykin said.

Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said previously that Russia would speed up preparations for the World Cup following the unveiling of the 11 host cities.

The International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) and Russia last month announced 11 host cities of the World Cup, which include Kaliningrad, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Saransk, Samara, Yekaterinburg, Rostov-on-Don, Volgograd and Sochi.

Russia pledged to hold “a high quality championships” with full-scale preparation works, Mutko said.

AUN: A Homecoming swag

the winners and the glamour

From all walks of life they converged on the ancient city of Yola, just as in one of those rarities, as all roads and even flights into the Adamawa State capital city packed to its peak; Such was the traffic and the mood, it was a contagious excitement.

The event ruled the airwaves as the electronic media in the city beamed their spotlight on the various event  centres featuring one programme or the other of the much-hyped American University of Nigeria (AUN) Homecoming that annually gathers the alumni of the prestigious varsity to a week-long repertoire of activities geared towards endearing the university to its immediate community by way of improving the lives of the school’s community, and by extension boosting morale of the students, as well as cementing the bond between alumni and students.

You could also posit that the Homecoming brings out the swag and colour in the AUN although a cursory look at life on the two campuses of the varsity would readily show that AUN truly mixes the brains with the swag; a rarity with Nigerian academic communities these days.

Now in its second year, the Homecoming event had steadily grown in content as it has in headliners; with the likes of Lynxx and Syndk8 headlining this year’s programme after top act Tiwa Savage’s performance of last year.

the natural-born MCs

In addition, the quality of the acts as well as the contests may well have improved going by the performance and deliveries, response and applause of the students who massively thronged the various venues including that of the Mr.& Miss AUN Pageant and the Grand Ball; which were events that went into the wee hours of the night.

Mr. Dorsey Spencer puts it this way: “Our goal is to make it such that each year, the alumni would be anticipating the Homecoming with excitement while the students would also long for it in excitement because it is like no other in this country.”

And he could not have been more to the point being the university’s Director of Student Activities and Involvement, whose office oversees the Homecoming programme.

From Monday, October 22 to Sunday, October 28, AUN campuses became the entertainment Olympic, of sorts, as football, basketball matches between the alumni and students and co-educational volleyball matches; career counselling and skills guidance session; a Spirit Day where students and community wore the AUN colours and paraphernalia; Dormitory decorating contest; alumni dinner and inauguration; Mr. & Miss AUN pageant; Homecoming Ball/Gala Night &Concert; Community Service and Awards, laid siege to the varsity community.

In addition, a Special durbar by the traditional monarch of Adamawa, the Lamido of Adamawa, Dr. Aliyi Musdafa, in his palace and in commemoration of the sallah celebrations, tended to complement the already packed activities of the Homecoming, as Yola itself bubbled in fanfare leaving behind the rest of the country.

the entertainers

Essentially themed around the varsity alumni culture, the Homecoming is the tradition in American schools of welcoming back alumni to campus. It is common in many universities, colleges and high schools in North America and AUN starts this culture this year. It usually includes sports, culture events, a parade and other activities for students, parents, alumni and the college or university community.

The AUN Alumni Association (AUNAA) itself was formally inaugurated on November 20, 2010 at the 5th Founder’s day and President’s Inauguration to basically communicate with, and bring value to the graduates of AUN, and to support actively and financially the goals of the university as detailed in its mission statement.

While opting to remain non-political and non-profit organization with chapters as provided in the Bylaws of The Association, electing a new executive committee headed by Mr. Mansour Mahman as president, was one of the highpoints of this year’s socio-cultural gathering.

According to AUN spokesman and Assistant Vice President (PR & Communications), Abba Tahir, life within AUN campuses greatly affects that in the immediate community in the same way as the university itself breathes on air generated by the community.

“AUN does not exist in isolation. That is how we want it and that is how the founder planned it to be. Most universities exist in isolation but not us. Everything we do here is tailored to positively affect the people outside, including virtually all aspects of life, including the Homecoming programme, which had nearly 60 per cent of its events having to do directly or indirectly with the community,” Tahir explained.

the colours

Within the campuses, the various residence halls wore new looks, events centres within and outside became a beehive of activities with impressive stage decorations, contestants cleaned their wardrobes and rehearsed their presentations, the upcoming rap and street dance acts polished their acts; this is the tale of the 2012 AUN’s Homecoming.

Beyond the Homecoming, however, lies an academic community that had a unique identity apart from the largely pronounced American-styled mien, which strangely was not even the case with the students on the campuses.

Like in all academic environments in the country with their pronounced penchant for that fashion for the occasion culture; the parties, blending with the academic work, however, the rub of the green-white-green on AUN has produced a distinctive swag about it that makes the students not want to be anywhere else other than here at AUN, even when presented with other opportunities considering their wealthy background most of students come from.

It goes beyond the rather extensive emphasis on community service which takes a pride of place as part of academic work by the students even well before their eligibility for the National Youth Service scheme of the government.

This much the likes of Anambra State-born, Houston, Texas-raised Sydney Peters, Kogi State-born Omoniyi Oluwaseyi, Anambra State-born Claire Maduka, and quite a sizeable league of students revealed during an interactive session with M2A, where also the AUN succinctly earned the tag of home-for-all-talents.

the vibes and steps

Maduka is a 300-level (senior) Economic Major who won the hotly contested Miss AUN competition and who it turned out was adept at spoken lyrics and furthermore whose poetry presentation stunned students and teachers alike to a standing ovation during the talent contest of the beauty pageant.

Omoniyi and Peters are fantastic rap music artistes with their numerous mixtapes and who could well branch out into the recording studios, despite their Business Administration leaning at the AUN; and from their countenances at the session, it would be a matter of time before they stun the Nigerian rap music market with the names Sesmo (Omoniyi) and Syd or Lil’ Syd (Peters).

These students all believe the environment provides the right mixture of cultures, traditions and style for the academic development of the student and even further express their strong desire to venture into the larger society with a dream and hope to experiment at honing those artistic skills discovered or experimented with while at the AUN.

the spoken lyrics talent

Such is the climate at AUN that highly skilled street dance acts like 4:18, Frequency, and Asa-like singing sensation-El, entertainers like Uduakabasi Jacobs, daring students like the Miss Congeniality, Kano State-born Yasmin Ahmed, are bred and given the platform to blossom largely on the strength of the rather freer academic structure and study environment. Add to that, all-rounders like Enugu-born Accounting Major, Francis Ahanonu, the newly-crowned Mr. AUN, and you have a class-full of swag.

However, try mixing that with the likes of Tosin Komolafe, a graduating senior in Computer Science, who developed innovative software that enables online administration of the university’s Math Placement Test (MPT).

This very promising student had already developed, along with Emeka Osigwe, the AUN e-ballot software that is used in the school for election into Student Government Association positions.

MPT with its English Language equivalent is the initial exams that AUN undergraduates must take to determine their relative strengths or levels in Math, or English, as the case may be.

The new system developed by Komolafe under two weeks of intensive work has a question bank and a

the rocker emeritus in tune with the occasion!

web-based application capable of randomly generating ready-made standard questions with multiple-choice answers. The question bank application also enables storing, editing, and search for questions.

The remarkable thing about this system is that no two students have the same questions. Even if both participants are on the same row or get one same question, the order of their multiple answers is different. So this reduces the chance of cooperation or communication with intent to cheat among exam candidates.

It is no wonder therefore where the school’s slogan of ‘Ýou have to see it for yourself’, gets its meaning from.

Established in 2003 by Nigeria’s former Vice President, Dr. Atiku Abubakar, along with other local and international statesmen and academic leaders, AUN offers an American-style education modelled after the curriculum of American universities with corresponding approaches to teaching and students assessment. The first entering class of 124 students and 20 professors was enrolled in September 2005. In May 2009, AUN had its first graduating class.

Michelle unveils Flower Girl, Nigeria’s newest romantic comedy

From the mind of Producer/Director Michelle Bello whose last film Small Boy won two African Movie Academy Awards, comes a tale of love lost and won in the city of Lagos.

Flower Girl is a romantic comedy that involves the life of Kemi, a shy florist, who is desperate to tie the knot with her long-time boyfriend Umar. Contrary to her expectations, Umar suddenly breaks up with her, leaving her devastated.  In a desperate bid to get him back, Kemi teams up with a most unlikely ally, Tunde Kulani, a famous playboy Nollywood star.

The movie addresses the issue of young women who are in a hurry to get married thinking only about their prefect wedding day and not the long-term commitment required by both individuals to make it last.

The next generation of amazing Nigerian stars meticulously assembled by Michelle includes Damilola Adegbite, (formerly in Tinsel), Chris Attoh (Tinsel), Eku Edewor (Studio 53), Bikiya Graham Douglas and Chuks Chukwujekwu, starring for the first time as a male lead.  Also starring in the film are famous actors Patrick Doyle, Teni Aofiyebi and Tosan Edremoda-Ugbeye. This dynamic ensemble brings a whole new take on love in Nigeria and audiences are sure to have a highly entertaining experience watching Flower Girl when it is released in 2013.

With an all-star crew including Co-Producer Michelle Dede (Big Brother Nigeria), Art Director Bola Bello (AMAA award winner for Art Direction: Small Boy), award-winning Screenwriter Jigi Bello (Shooter, The Waiting Room) and Director of Photography James Costello (Inale, Last Flight to Abuja and Black November), this production is highly anticipated by filmmakers all across Africa.

Shot entirely on location, Flower Girl is Michelle’s love letter to Lagos and will feature locations familiar to many as well as some exciting parts of the city never seen before in a film.  From churches to business hubs and from electrifying night life to beautiful lagoon views, Flower Girl captures modern-day Lagos in stunning high resolution that will be enjoyed by audiences everywhere.

Oronna Ilaro Festival enters national tourism calendar

The Oronna Ilaro Cultural Festival has officially been endorsed by the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation. The endorsement was made by the Director General of the NTDC, Otunba Olusegun Runsewe in Abuja.

Making the pronouncement during a visit by a delegation from the community led by the Chairman, Central Planning Committee, Chief Kayode Odunaro, the NTDC director, Runsewe, added that the festival will subsequently enjoy massive support from the corporation just like the over 160 festivals evenly spread across Nigeria currently being supported by the NTDC.

Runsewe promised to supply several promotional materials like NTDC-branded T-shirts, calendars, bags and other souvenirs stressing that NTDC endorsement will also secure deals for the festival from several corporate interests who recognize the corporation’s constitutional mandate of promoting and regulating tourism activities in the country.

Speaking further, Runsewe disclosed plans by the corporation to introduce a book that will capture enthralling mythologies and folklore about the history of different communities in the country saying the book on Igboukwu is already underway.

He also used the opportunity to commend the governor of Ogun State, Chief Ibikunle Amosun for his efforts at marketing Ogun State tourism destinations and establishing the State’s ministry of tourism charging others to take a cue from him.

Earlier in his remarks, Chief Kayode Odunaro, , explained that the festival has been celebrated annually since 1992 but has not enjoyed national presence stressing that this new status will now consolidate on the efforts already made while hinting on several programmes put in place in the build-up to this year’s edition to celebrate the rich culture of the community.

Odunaro said that the Oronna Ilaro Festival would bring about positive possibilities not only for Ilaro town or Yewaland, but also for Ogun State and, indeed, Nigeria adding that the festival was a unifying annual socio-cultural event by the people in pursuit of their cultural tradition and a platform for self help initiatives to develop the community.

Activities lined up for the one-week event include; a street carnival/ road show all over Ilaro township on Saturday, November 25; tribute to Oronna and other deities in Ilaro on Monday,  medical check-up, 50km festival race and  Egungun dance and traditional Efe dance ceremony.

Other activities include Gelede display and Sisi Ilaro beauty pageant on Wednesday, November 28; street jams/talent hunt and clubs and association day on Thursday, November 29.

Jumat service and award day/ royal dinner will hold on Friday, November 30, while Onigba-Aje cultural ceremony and grand finale and closing ceremony comes up on Saturday, Decemeber 1.

The annual Oronna Day celebration which has been re-christened as Oronna Ilaro Festival is held in the town of Ilaro in Yewa South Local Government Area of Ogun State.

Niger State to build 305-room N20bn hotel

Niger State government has signed an agreement with a private construction, Access Field Nigeria Limited, to build and operate a five-star hotel to be sited in the state capital, Minna.

The cost of the agreement put at N19. 6 billion will be executed under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement.

Disclosing the deal in Minna, during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the state government and Access Field Nigeria Limited, the commissioner of Trade and Investment, Yahaya Dansallau, said the seven storey facility expected to be completed within 24 months would have 305 key rooms.

Dansallau stressed the need for the project to be executed within the stipulated time frame and in accordance with the specifications, adding further that the state government had constituted a seven-man committee to oversee the project.

“This project is awarded under a concession agreement between the state government and the company handling the project, where the project will be executed under the platform of Design, Build, Operate and Transfer (DBOT),” Dansallau said.

He added that the company which handled the project will run the hotel for 25 years after which its ownership would be transferred to the state government.