EDUCATION. LITERACY. EMPOWERMENT… Heart of Programming Concept at LABAF

“A combo of Education, Literacy and Empowerment are the core virtues at the Lagos Book & Art Festival, otherwise called the grand ‘festival of ideas and life.’ This is the agenda we have pursued since 1999, when LABAF’s birth was instigated by the desire to help prepare the Nigeria citizenry for then impending era of political freedom… a relief from decades of wastefulness by the vagabonds in warrior attire.”

“The LABAF signposted its mission with the dream to help deepen human capital development in the continent through a systematic spread of enlightenment through the written, painted, sculpted, crafted or spoken texts… that educate, enlighten, empower and develop the mind… all about erasing ignorance from the mind of men… eroding their powerlessness… wearing off their hopelessness in the capability of goodness to always trump the evil.”

“Significantly, the Book (knowledge and mental empowerment) must, going forward, be installed as the weapon of our engagement with the malfeasance that abound in global political arena. Education must be our shield against the acidic rain that hover above our collective consciousness due to the irresponsibility and irascibility of political and economic actors locally, and globally.

“Mental and mind development must be our wall against the reign of leprous beings that often/have appropriate(d) our collective consciousness. So, as you come to the festival ground, just remember that the BOOK is the megastar at the LABAF… the writer is as big as the idea contained his/her Book”.

LABAF IN CONTEXT OF CORA MANDATE

“CORA was born out of a desire to help facilitate the rise of the ‘intellect’ over ‘emotion’ in the affairs of peoples of our nation”.

“At CORA, we are more focused on the mind and mental development of the people of Africa, so they can proudly take their seat at the globalization discourse. We believe that this can only be accomplished through mass literary, using the instrumentality of the arts”.

“For us at CORA, the core of our very VISION and MISSION is the protection, and implicitly, the sustenance and survival of our/the human race. We insist that no Human is greater than the Other. All is/are created equal, except where extraneous circumstances dictate that some are better privileged than the others; and such who could exploit such privilege to oppress the non-so-privileged.

“Essentially, the first instrument of oppression of the ‘lowly’ by the so-called High and Mighty is the hoarding of such essential civilising tools as Education, which ensures that important information circulates to all; Empowerment (mental and economical) which ensures that everyone is capacitated to be able to fully explore his/her potentials, and exploit same for his self-benefit and mutual benefit of his/her family and the community.”

“The CORA insists that what the community of Humans needs is the flourishing and flowering of Literacy to/and among every member of the Human family; so they are well resourced to participate effectively in the conversations that affect their common interest; and the general wellbeing of the society. This is the way to deepen democratic values and guarantee that all will be effective participants in decision-making processes that lead to collective good, and better nationhood.

WHY OPEN AIR FESTIVAL

“This is why we insist on an open air fest of Ideas and Life, where every member of the community is a partaker; and an active actor in the socialisation process. This is the creed of our engagement at the programming directorate of the LABAF, which is running into its 20th anniversary on a blaze of glory. This edition is an extension of the ideas that we have pursued in recent editions of the festival that we love to claim as the “biggest cultural picnic on the continent…”