The Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation says it is collaborating with Google Nigeria to engage the creative industry in order to promote upcoming local talents.
The Director-General of the Corporation, Folorunsho Coker, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday in Abuja.
Coker noted that inadequate funds had hindered some artists from producing their videos, be it dancing or cooking, among others, hence Google would provide an opportunity for them to showcase their work at the local and international levels.
He explained that the synergy would further boost their creativity, as well as provide them with a platform to explore more opportunities in the creative industry around the globe.
According to him, the collaboration will bring exposure of the country’s creative industry on a global stage, promote local talents and provide exposure of the nation’s creative industry.
He said: “This is a positive initiative because it is the opportunity that becomes employment and employment becomes income and out of the income we get taxation back.
“Google Nigeria has a good relationship with us, and to see both YouTube and Google come together in Nigeria to promote our local talents and bring exposure to our creative industry is a welcome development.
“I think it is also the beginning of the exponential explosion of the creative industry of Nigeria on the global stage.
“We are looking for upcoming artists in a variety of ways for YouTube and Google to capture their activities and promote it on a global platform.
“Because it will help their contents, be it videos, arts, cooking and others, showcased right there next to the world on the same platform.
“Google recently launched a series: ‘Come chop Bellefull,’ which is about Nigerian content and they have learnt how to make variety of Nigerian delicacies such as Isiewu, jollof rice, moimoi and with high photography depth, a Russian in Moscow can make any of the delicacies just by googling it.
“Prior to now, that global eco-system is what we do not normally push the positive image of Nigerians into, but now we have the platform and a great opportunity to showcase to the world the positive image of Nigeria.”
On preservation of local cultural heritages and sites, the NTDC boss said the advent of technology, particularly the internet, would contribute immensely to its preservation for posterity, historical facts, tourism and references for educational research.
Coker said: “If you capture properly most of our Osun Osogbo, Oju de Oba and other festivals in high resolution and put it on the internet, the generation unborn will see exactly what it is, but we are not doing it and it is making us loose them.
“This is an opportunity to digitise and keep them for posterity because it is digital that will help preserve our culture as well as project who we are to the rest of the world.”
Coker therefore expressed gratitude to Titi Akinsomi, Head Public Policy, Google Nigeria, for her resilience in building the relationship between NTDC and Google.
“We are fortunate that Google is putting their resources to our disposal for lots of creativity,” said NTDC chief executive.
NAN.
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