Dr Mohammed Ibrahim Awal, the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture has commended the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) for their efforts towards making Accra a livable city through the beautification of open spaces with public arts.

He said the Assembly was instrumental in the promotion of arts in Ghana via public arts and that their immense support over the years could not go unnoticed and deserved tons of commendation for their bold initiative.

The Minister said this in a speech read on his behalf by the Director of Arts and Culture, Madam Josephine Ohene-Osei at the 6th edition of the World Arts Day celebration on the theme: “Re-imagining Ghana’s future creatively” in Accra.

Dr Awal said: “I would like to commend the AMA led by Mr Adjei Sowah for the partnership with the Ghana Association of Visual Artists (GAVA), Ghana Graffiti, VASEP, and Ulti-Leaf Foundation for the celebration of the 6th World Arts Day … The Assembly was instrumental in the promotion of Arts in Ghana via public arts … They deserve tons of commendation for their bold initiative and I urge them to keep up the good work.”

He extended an invitation to artists for their inputs and support in the mandate of the Ministry, which was to ensure that their sector makes the necessary impact in Ghana and beyond.

Mr Mohammed Adjei Sowah, the Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive in a remark said the Assembly’s keen interest in promoting arts in the city was to allow the young artists to exhibit their talent, adding that the general perception that visual art is a course for students who performed poorly in school must change.

He said he was encouraged by the resilience and aggressiveness of young artists to support arts in the city and believed that art could contribute significantly to the country’s economy when promoted as a professional career.

Madam Janet Edna Nyame, the Executive Director of the National Commission on Culture congratulated the organisers of the programme and added that the initiative was a unique opportunity afforded artists to display their work for appreciation.

She said enhancing arts and the work of artists would benefit the public and therefore must always be encouraged.

Nana Otuo Otuoahene Acheampong, the President of the Ghana Association of Visual Artists appealed to the government to invest more in the arts and culture industry and mainstream the discipline into national development to reap its economic benefits.

Abdourahamane Diallo, the representative of UNESCO to Ghana commended Ghana for signing the UNESCO Convention of Culture aimed at protecting and promoting the diversity of cultural expressions.

“Through this historic agreement, the global community formally recognize the dual nature, both cultural and economic, of contemporary cultural expressions produced by artists and cultural professionals, he said.