ABOUT CORA
MISSION: To Create Enabling Environment for the Flourishing of the Contemporary Arts of Nigeria & the Continent.
VISION: To Make Art & Culture the Prime Destination for Investment in Nigeria and Africa.
DEFINITION: We Are ‘Cultural Landscapists.’

CORA is the Winner of the Prince Claus Award, 2006.
History: The Committ ee for Relevant Art (CORA) came to life on June 2, 1991. It’s a culture activist organisation with the agenda to facilitate creation of an enabling environment for the flourishing of the contemporary arts of Nigeria, in the forms of Literature, Theatre, Fine Art, Music, Movie as well as TV Programme Design and Production.
In the past three decades, CORA has been at the forefront of championing the major issues that have shaped – directly or otherwise – the cultural landscape of Nigeria. Some of the most forward-looking initiatives in the Nigerian culture environment came out of CORA-organised fora.
CORA has carried out its intermediation role through the vehicle of its various programmes, projects and activities including the following:
 ARTS STAMPEDE (quarterly since 1991)
 LABAF (annually since 1999)
 ARTHOUSE FORUM (periodic since 2005)
 LAGOS CINEMA CARNIVAL (on rest)
 LAGOS THE CITY ARTS GUIDE (on rest)
CORA also convenes regular sessions of Lagos Circle of Critics; Culture Working Commi ttee; Lagos Peppersoup Elites; Coalition of Nigerian Artists, CONA etc – these are special purpose vehicles (SPV) through which it accomplishes its broader objectives.
CORA is in relationship with Artists organisations/Associations and agencies within the culture bureaucracies; and periodically stages collaborative projects with these institutions.

ArtABOUT LABAF
LAUNCHED in September 1999, LABAF is a 24-year-old comprehensive week-long culture picnic. It features reading sessions, conversations around ‘content and context of books’, art and craft displays, children/students art workshops, Publishers-Booksellers-Writers-Readers’ Forum, Writers’ workshops, Book Trek, Book exhibitions, Drama skits, Live music, Poetry and Dance performances.
It is an ART festival with high BOOK content.
LABAF has over the years transformed from a Literary Festival to being a campaign for LITERACY – stressing on EDUCATION (knowledge acquisition which leads to mental capacitation), that guarantees ENLIGHTENMENT and ultimately leads to EMPOWERMENT that ensures active participation of the citizenry in discourses around the social, political, economic and cultural affairs of the nation, and the world by extension.
All of this is premised on tapping into the instrumentality of ARTS and CULTURE production and expression to deepen CIVIC engagement.
To this effect, the programming content at LABAF goes beyond creative writings and arts/craft materials to embrace non-fiction and other such cultural projects relevant to the theme of each edition.
LABAF in past decade and half has also gradually rebranded from being a project solely organised by CORA, to becoming a platform for other content producers to stage their events, or accomplish their projects. These are branded Partners, or Collaborators. Hence most of the events listed in the programme outline are by other producers who use the LABAF platform.
In fulfilment of CORA’s desire, many other festivals – literary and cultural – have also grown out of the LABAF platform and flowering in their own distinct form and character, but essentially using the LABAF’s template of committed and resilient operations to stay the course. This is thus fulfilling the CORA oft-expressed dream of ultimately having a culture festival in every city of the country and Africa, by extension.