Nigeria’s future is bright with the Federal Government’s diversification from oil, Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said.
He spoke at the ceremony to mark the 2016 World Tourism Day in Eko Atlantic City being built on reclaimed land on the Bar Beach.
He said: ‘’It takes an investor to have great confidence in any economy before putting hundreds of millions of dollars into a city as this.
‘’Those who can see the bright stars in our horizon, beyond this temporary cloud of difficulties, are investing in the country even as we speak,’’ he said.
‘’We must find other sustainable means of earning foreign exchange outside oil, to grow our country’s GDP and create jobs for our people. Agriculture and mining are viable options, but tourism is the low hanging fruit in this regard, and we must not hesitate to pluck it,” he said, adding that the Federal Government is working to pull Nigeria out of recession and put the economy on the path of sustainable growth.
He said the choice of Eko Atlantic City as venue of the 2016 World Tourism Day celebration is significant, adding: ‘’While I will like to reiterate Nigeria’s readiness to explore and exploit tourism for the benefit of its economy, I can confidently add that Eko Atlantic City has what it takes to drive tourism in Nigeria. And this is just as well, because while the role of the government will be to provide the enabling environment, the private sector will drive the growth of tourism’’.
Mohammaed described Eko Atlantic City ‘’a tourist haven’’ which has what it takes to drive tourism in Nigeria.
‘’The city will boast of 450,000 residents and 300,000 commuters (daily), which is a boon for the myriad of businesses to be located in the city. In addition, it will have a registered Free Economic Zone to encourage economic activities. As you are also aware, shopping malls attract tourists the way bees are attracted to honey.”