Government is committed to expanding the economy by paying equal attention to the film and television industry, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Deputy Minister of Information said on Tuesday.

He underscored the politico-socio-economic importance of the social arts stressing that government would support and develop the sector.

Mr Ablakwa was speaking to a section of a ten-member Chinese delegation, from the Beijing Film of Academy (BFA) that called on him at the ministry in Accra. They are in the country to strengthen bilateral relations with the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI).

Mr Ablakwa applauded the Chinese government for its continuous support to the country’s socio-economic development and the film and television sector in particular. He said the National Theatre, as an example, was built with the economic support of the Chinese government. Mr Ablakwa described China’s economy as one of the biggest and fastest growing adding it was a “shining examples for developing countries like Ghana.”

He said film and television was one of the effective tools for development and stressed that China had efficiently harnessed the sector. Mr Ablakwa described BFA as one of the oldest body that had trained lots of West Africans in the arts and expressed the hope that the institute would continue to deepen its relationship with NAFTI.

Professor Zhang HuiJun, President of BFA and the Vice President of the China Filmmakers Association, said his outfit was committed to exchanging faculty, students and academic programmes with NAFTI.

He said NAFTI was an institute of high excellence and good potentials adding that his outfit had not regretted forming partnership with Ghana.