Ibom Christmas Promises Stability for SMEs in Creative Sector

Vanessa Obioha

Like it did last year, the Akwa Ibom State government will once again open its doors to Nigerians from across the nation and diaspora, as well as foreign tourists, to experience the Ibom Christmas, a yearly yuletide event that leverages entertainment, outdoor catering, arts, and merch sales to capture the essence of the season.

Planned to run for 32 days, the festive event will run from Wednesday, December 1, 2021, to Saturday, January 1, 2022. The hub of its activities will be at the Christmas Village, a secluded area housing numerous stalls spread across 11 hectares of land situated in Uyo, the state’s capital.

Conceived in 2019 by the state governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, the goal of the project was to help expand the streams of income for creative entrepreneurs as well as increase revenue generation for the state government. In its last edition, amid COVID-19 restrictions, it generated over N2.5 billion.

So far, it has given voice to thousands of creatives, directly and indirectly, helping them monetize their creative outputs. The 2020 edition empowered young people with over 1,500 direct employment.

According to the state’s Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Orman Esin, the move to hold the 2020 edition amid COVID-19 restriction reaffirmed the state’s commitment to encourage and support small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in the creative sector. Its return this year will mark an even better outing being that the global economy has gained some level of normalcy.

“It was important for us to stimulate the economy,” Esin said. “The Ibom Christmas, especially the Christmas Village, is all about putting together SMEs in a location, and ensuring that they get the opportunity to boost their businesses, ensuring they stand strong in the coming year.

Wooing tourists, Esin revealed that plans have been made to provide logistic and accommodation support employing a well-planned itinerary to help tourists explore the length and breadth of the city.