From Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri
The Imo People’s Congress, Israel (IPCI), an umbrella body of the state’s citizens living in Israel, has assured Governor Hope Uzodinma of its commitment to transforming tourism, hospitality, and culture in the state.
The group gave this assurance during a courtesy visit led by its Diaspora President, Kingsley Obinna, to the State Commissioner for Tourism, Hospitality and Culture, Jerry Egemba, on Monday. They congratulated him on his reappointment and praised the governor’s decision to expand the scope of the ministry to include hospitality and culture.
Ike said, “The stage is now set for a more holistic approach to developing the sectors which are interrelated. Culture as a husband should marry Tourism as a wife and connect Hospitality for easy marketing nationally and internationally.
“There is hardly anything anyone can do without culture because culture is everything and everything is culture,” Egemba said.
He thanked the governor for finding Egemba worthy to head the ministry and expressed hope that, with his enviable track record of hard work, resilience, and determination, the state would attract investors willing to come home to invest.
“This would be possible in view of the numerous programmes the Commissioner had engaged in right from his first appointment under the Uzodinma administration.”
While reiterating their willingness to come home and partner with the government in repositioning the industries for the better, the group called for legislative instruments to support the sectors in order to attract direct foreign investment.
They recalled that on the 28th of May, 2024, Imo State celebrated “World Culture Day” to commemorate the cultural diversity of various countries around the world under the United Nations (UN).
Prior to this, the ministry had observed World Tourism Day on the 27th of September, 2023, and organised a first-of-its-kind yuletide family fiesta tagged “The Extravaganza Christmas Season of Victory Celebrations in the Wonderland” held from the 16th of December, 2023, to the 6th of January, 2024, with fanfare.