It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to Port Harcourt for the 2012 Garden City Festival. It is hard to believe that we are already marking our fifth GCLF. In the short space of 5 years, the festival has become such an integral part of Port Harcourt’s identity that I am very proud to give it my support once again.
The Rivers State government’s partnership with the Rainbow Book Club continues to bear fruit and I am greatly pleased that our collaboration has resulted in Port Harcourt being chosen by UNESCO as the 2014 World Book Capital City. I am sure that the continued success of the Garden City Festival played some part in helping us achieve that honour.
As an avid reader and champion of universal education and equal rights, I have always been interested in the works of female writers. Women are the backbone of any society and seeing the world through their eyes is not only fascinating, but also enriching and empowering for us as a community and a nation. The writers being featured over the next few days all manage to bring their own unique flavor to the table and I am certainly looking forward to seeing the diverse imaginings that will come out of this year’s focus on Women in Literature. We welcome these talented ladies to our great city and hope they gain as much from their interactions with participants as we will learn from them. Indeed I wish everyone taking part in the festival a very enjoyable few days.
I hope that all visitors to the events have an enriching experience.
***H. E. Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, the Executive Governor of Rivers State will be at the event today. Venue is the Atlantic Hall, Hotel Presidential.
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