By Christopher Tom, Uyo
AKwa Ibom state government has said that Nollywood Artists and other International Entertainers are ready to participate in 2022 edition of Mr & Miss AKwa Ibom Beauty Pageant meant to showcase tourism potentials of the state.
Addressing a press conference in Uyo during unveiling of Mr&Miss AKwa Ibom Beauty Pageant, the chairman of AKwa Ibom State Hotels Management & Tourism Board Obong Ini Akpabio said the event will open the gateway for national and International Tourists to patronize tourism sector in the state .
He said Nollywood Artists will flood the state to add colour to the Pageant which will be organized to meet national and international standards .
Akpabio ; an expert in tourism business regretted that the pageant was not organized in the since 2014 because the state Tourism Board saddled with the responsibility was not constituted .
” When we came on board , I took up the task of repositioning the tourism and hospitality sector in line with International standard and best practices one which was the decision to organize Mr & Miss AKwa Ibom Beauty Pageant in the tenure of the present administration ”
Akpabio explained that the pageant would be organized on September 16, 2022 as a parting gift for governor Udom Emmanuel as the administration winds up in 2023.
He said the theme of the Pageant as “Emergence of Beauty and Brains for a crown with Impact” adding that the state will be looking forward to an impactful reign of a king and Queen through social projects that will touch critical areas of human development.
He said the franchise for the pageant was given to Glimpse Charity Foundation to package Mr & Miss AKwa Ibom Pageant in order to give our male and dey youths an opportunity to express their creativity and contribute their quota to the state .
The Chief Executive Officer of Glimpse Charity Foundation Mrs Precious Edet said though the pageant has been organized in the state in the past decades , the 2022 edition would be unprecedented and something to remember.
She maintained that the Organisation was poised at redefining the way beauty pageant should be conducted by ensuring that all the personnel involved undergo skill training to equipped them with modern skill of pageantry.
She recalled that the foundation was established in 2019 with a mission to build financial giants by building a stable population from local and vulnerable groups through soft skills and enterpreneurship .
The Chief Executive Officer reiterated that the pageant will be used as a medium to support small scale enterpreneurship and development of micro businesses for contestants across the 31 local government areas in the state.
” Glimpse Charity Foundation will hosts successfully the upcoming 2922 Mr & Miss AKwa Ibom Beauty pageant as the event that will grow to take the centre stage among other social activities ” he said
