Maiden Ghana Arts And Culture Awards Launched

The first edition of the Ghana Arts And Culture Awards (GACA) was launched on Friday at a colourful ceremony in Accra.

Coming under the theme: ‘Rewarding Excellence in Arts and Culture’, the award seeks to honor and appreciate the forerunners, brands and key players who have contributed greatly to the Arts and culture industry in Ghana and beyond.

Speaking at the launch, the Executive Director of National Commission on Culture, Madam Janet Edna Nyame, expressed the readiness of her outfit to support any activity that promotes the name of Ghana on the global market.

“It is the obligation of the National Commission on Culture to make contributions and give our support to any cause which focuses on upholding and uplifting our Ghanaian culture by way of promoting and presenting our Ghanaian traditions and values.

”It is on this note that the National Commission on Culture deems it an honour to associate ourselves with the brand that sees the arts and culture as a valuable asset to Ghana. This awards scheme deserves the much needed support because it is doing everything possible to celebrate the local individuals doing well” she said.

According to her, the introduction of GACA complements the ministry’s quest to encourage Ghanaian made produce for economic growth.

Focus

Mike Frempong, research and communication director of the Arts and Culture Company, said this year’s GACA was keen to promote the efforts of the small and medium key stakeholders concerning cultural entertainment in the country.

He explained that nominations for the awards are ”based on how positively influential the projects of these individuals and brands have been on the local arts and culture scene, and that a 3 to 9 member panel of distinguished industry leaders will vet the nominees to decide the finalists who then be subjected to public vote.’’

Eighteen award categories are up for grabs including; Art Festival Event of the Year, Traditional Music Group of the Year, Cultural Television Programme of the Year, Ghanaian Visual Artist of the Year and Cultural Heritage Entrepreneur of the Year, among others. Also included in the categories are honorary awards.

The ceremony started with opening cultural performances by Universal Wonderful Street Academy, Gershon Azamela, and the Adehyeman cultural group.

Also in attendance were industry players such as Mr. Louis Wonder, Mr. Dela Boutri, Sherifa Gunu, Mohammed Awudu, Pascal Aka, Ras Kuuku, Amb Prince Kojo-Hilton and Bright Komla Kpoha.

The award is an initiative in partnership with the National Commission on Culture, Ghana Tourism Authority, National Folklore Board and Tourism Society of Ghana under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture.

Nomination will close on September 30, 2019 and qualified nominees will be released first week in October, 2019.