Agenda 2063: African Union Charges Epe Youths On Tourism & Development

By _ Babatunde Kaka

• Addressing the youths of the community, Hon Quadri implored them to see tourism as a window through which a vast array of opportunities could be harnessed.

The Economic, Social and Cultural Council wing of the African Union, ECOSOCC, on Monday, 27th September, 2021, pledged to work assiduously towards jockeying the immense tourism potentials of Epe towards economic development

Speaking while addressing the exciting gathering at the epoch-making tourism event tagged “Tourism for Inclusive Growth” to commemorate the year 2021 World Tourism Day, Hon Quadri Adu Kehinde, the Head of Culture and Tourism, African Union, Economic Social and Cultural Council, ECOSOCC, Nigeria, said the group world work symbiotically with Princess Olayemi Surah Animashaun, first female chairman of Epe Local Government, towards achieving this goal.

“We are going to bring people from the 56 African countries to Epe next year. The next one, we are not going to leave it to the Local Government alone, we are going to set up a committee with the Chairman to begin the planning for the next edition,” he stated.

Addressing the youths of the community, Hon Quadri implored them to see tourism as a window through which a vast array of opportunities could be harnessed.

“Tourism is a virgin land, it is an avenue where you can become whatever you want to become. It doesn’t stop you from becoming whatever you want to become. I want to call upon you to cooperate with the present administration of Epe Local Government. Our tourism potential is enormous and it must be strategically harnessed for the benefit of the people of Epe and Lagos State at large. We will empower more of youths this year through tourism as we did 2 years ago.”

READ ALSO: Oyetola, Ooni, Alara Headline 2021 Olojo Festival

He said ECOSOCC, the Economic, Social and Cultural Council is an organ of the African Union formerly called the Organization of African Unity.

Quadri further emphasised on the need for Africa to be self-reliant in order to save its indigenous cultures and norms from extinction.

“They (The African Union) came up with agenda 2063 and aspiration number 5 (Africa with a strong cultural identity, common heritage, values and ethics), is what we are experiencing today. Africa should be for Africans. By 2063, we should be wearing what we produce, we should be eating what we produce and we should be speaking our language, most especially Yoruba language,” he disclosed.

Mr Quadri also hailed the significance of traditional institutions, stating that our Royal Fathers would aid more in community development if their roles were revised and made to be more expansive.

FURTHER READING:

• Leveraging Epe Tourism Potentials – The Fierce Urgency Of “Now”
• Epe Headlines Tourism, Heritage Potentials To Mark World Tourism Day
• Kayokayo 2021: Hon Wale Raji Sues For Sustained Unity In Epe

Praising the former Lagos state governor for his untiring efforts towards infrastructural development in Epe, the tourism expert further hailed the enormous tourism potentials of the division as well as the massive strides it has made from 20 years ago when he visited the fish basket of Lagos.