By Sylvia Etta
Cross River State governor, Senator Liyel Imoke has said that the annual Calabar Festival otherwise known as Carnival Calabar is growing the internally generated revenue, IGR of the state by 50 percent.
This is coming on the heels of criticisms by sections of interests groups on the state who accuse the government of continuing to ‘waste’ money on the annual festival and failing to turn it to a profitable brand over the years.
But, Imoke while addressing members of the Senior Staff Association of Air Transport Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSAN), who visited him in his office in Calabar recently disclosed that the festival has been growing the IGR of the state by 50 percent.
“We are positioning Cross River State as an economy that is service driven and has traffic all year round.
“The Calabar Festival alone helps us grow our Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) up to 50 percent, so we need to sustain this with world class infrastructure at the airport and other major entrances to the state.”
Imoke had in February informed economic stakeholders in the state at a conference at the Tinapa Lakeside Hotel that the state IGR under his watch has increased from 200 Million Naira to 1Billion Naira monthly.
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