The federal government says it expects the forthcoming ‘EnjoyNigeria Expo’ to create 100,000 new jobs between 2021 and 2023 in the trade sector of the Nigerian economy.

Kemi Arodudu, a director in the Ministry of Industry Trade and Investments, disclosed this on Thursday in a statement.

Ms Arodudu noted that it would scale up the value-chain delivery of the creative, entertainment, travel, trade, and cultural industries between 2021 and 2023.

On Tuesday, President Muhammadu Buhari asserted that if India could lift 271 million people out of poverty, Nigeria could “surely” lift 100 million people out of poverty in 10 years.

Ms Arodudu added that the expo would assist small and medium enterprises to increase job and wealth creation and gain access to global markets.

Ms Arodudu, also the chairwoman of the expo planning committee, said, “This is in addition to empowering women and youths with entrepreneurial skills to facilitate innovations as well as connect them to bigger markets to sustain their businesses whilst showcasing their products and services.”

She said major components of the initiative included an exhibition, trade and investment forum, and a string of entertainment events and awards.

Ms Arodudu explained that the project was anchored on five major strands, woven around critical creative visual and performing arts contents including music, film, photography, painting, fashion, craft, stage drama, and comedy.

The chief executive of Welcome2Nigeria Project (W2Np), the private sector facilitator of the project, Isa Sago, said the event would deepen the contributions of the creative, entertainment, cultural, and travel trade sectors to the diversification of the Nigerian economy.

“Arrangement is in top gear to stage the first-ever combined initiative to signpost the creative, entertainment, cultural and travel-trade industries in Nigeria,” Mr Sago stated.

The EnjoyNigeria Expo is a public-private partnership project of the trade and investments ministry and the Ministry of Information and Culture as the lead establishment.

The five-day expo will hold in mid-November 2021.

This week, Mr Buhari’s regime also inaugurated a new poverty committee, appointing Vice President Yemi Osinbajo its chairman.

(NAN)