Olusegun Runsewe, the director-general of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), has asserted that Nigeria has serious challenges but urged foreign tourists to consider exploring the country’s beautiful destinations because many of the reports are false.

Mr Runsewe made the assertion on Saturday night at the closing ceremony of a three-day International Arts and Crafts (INAC) Expo organised by the NCAC in Abuja.

“Nigeria does not have a problem,” he said. “But we have challenges, and you can never become a champion until you overcome your challenges.”

The NCAC boss, who described the negative news making headlines about Nigeria as “fake”, said Nigeria’s adoption of a peace strategy has helped overcome challenges.

According to Mr Runsewe, the diplomatic community would not have participated in the event if Nigeria was not peaceful.

“There is no great country in the world that does not have crime it is tackling, but we celebrate ours beyond proportion.

“There is a lot of negative and fake news going near and there, but what I have succeeded in doing today is a testimony that Nigeria is safe,” he said.

Mr Runsewe urged Nigerians to tolerate one another by using cultural diplomacy to address the challenges bedevilling the country.

Speaking on the theme of the exposition, “Networking Nigerian Arts and Crafts to the World,” he described cultural diplomacy as a peaceful strategy used everywhere in the world to overcome challenges.

“So, we need to tolerate each other and bring in cultural diplomacy. Once we do that, all these challenges will be addressed,” Mr Runsewe said.

He said Nigerians must reawaken themselves to understand that making Nigeria great is the duty of everyone to contribute.

Also speaking, Lami Adamu-Lau, national president of the National Council For Women Societies (NCWS), commended the NCAC for organising the INAC exposition to train Nigerian women in various skills.

(NAN)