Dr Frank Amoakohene is the Ashanti Regional Minister
Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, has stated that when he assumed office, he noticed that the region’s creative industry, particularly Kumawood, was divided by what he described as “destructive competition.”
Speaking at the National Film Dialogue organised by the Nataional Film Authority, Dr Amoakohene explained that he saw the situation as urgent and took immediate steps to address it.
Stakeholders must promote local movies among high school students – Dr Amoakohene
He said the creative sector plays an important role in giving the Ashanti Region prominence, not only within Ghana but internationally.
Dr Amoakohene explained that his concern was the constant fights within the industry, which made stakeholders work against each other instead of pulling resources together for growth.
The Minister mentioned he personally took part in several meetings to mediate and unite the factions within Kumawood.
He stated that with the support of the Ministry of Tourism and the National Film Authority, many of the problems facing the sector were resolved.
NFA organises successful National Film Dialogue in Accra
He added that the results were evident during the Ashantifest celebration, where Kumawood and the broader creative sector delivered what one of their best performances in years.
The Minister further mentioned that these efforts led to the establishment of the Kumawood Ashanti Film Industry Secretariat.
According to him, this new body was created to bring together all sectors of the creative industry under one umbrella, providing a structured system to mentor young talents, nurture creativity, and carry out projects that highlight the Ashanti Region’s culture and stories.
“I realised that the industry was full of destructive competition instead of having a complementary collaboration to project the Kumawood industry. Times without number, I had to personally sit in meetings and see how best to able to unite and fix the sector. With the support of the tourism minister and National Film Authority, we fixed majority of their problems and were able to get them to put up one of the best performances during the Ashantifest.
“This led to the establishment of Kumawood Ashanti film industry which brought on board all other sectors of the creative industry. It is a robust secretariat now to mentor, groom and embark on projects that will tell our story well, project our culture and be able to promote our region and country,” he said.
Ibrahim Mahama, Wode Maya, Rocky Dawuni, and others offered diplomatic passports
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