Leadership (Abuja)
Sherifat Giwa
1 April 2008
Abuja — Telecoms giant, Globacom, has again demonstrated its love and desire for cultural revival in Africa when it signed a Memorandum of Understanding, (MoU) with the Festival International De Theatre Du Benin, (FITHEB) last Sunday, even as it said the move was to uplift the biennial that is easily the flagship cultural event in sub saharan Africa.
By this gesture, Globacom has become the official (titled) sponsor of the event with the challenge to elevate it and take it to a higher level.
Expressing his joy at the ceremonies, Du Benin country's minister of culture, Dr. Soumanou Seibou Toleba, said he was very pleased that Globacom is the official sponsor of this year's version.
He noted that only few investors are interested in culture but Globacom has distinguished itself as culture - centric by the gesture. " I believe strongly, and indeed the people can see that Globacom is a serious organisation, given this support and their approach", he said.
Toleba also stated that it is the first time in 18 years that the festival is being sponsored in this magnitude, noting that the company will bring its famed vibrancy and colour to the cultural extravaganza. "I am one of the happiest ministers in Benin today and I hope Globacom will help elevate the Festival to a higher level", he added.
Also speaking, Mr Sulaiman Olarewaju who represented the company, thanked the organisers for the opportunity of the collaboration. Expressing the feelings of the chairman of Globacom, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jnr., on cultural revitalisation, and noted that the gesture was in line with the company's social responsibility concerns . "Globacom is about people and possibilities; it is about empowerment and it is about development", he said.
While noting that development cannot be isolated from culture, he stated that Globacom will encourage the development of its operational environment through massive support for cultural sustenance.
"This collaboration, we hope, will be the beginning of a series of social responsibility initiatives by Globacom to the continued growth and development of Benin ", he further said.
The director of FITHEB, Dr. Orden Alladatin, was full of praise for the network. He believes it is a sign of greater things to come to the industry.The signing ceremony was witnessed by a large crowd of media chiefs, theatre practitioners, cultural ambassadors and Art lovers.
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