The Nation Newspaper

Category: Travels on Saturday

  • N-Power, ITP collaborate to train youths in hospitality

    All is set for the commencement of the N-Power Hospitality vocational training for Nigerian unemployed youths. Programme is a collaborative effort between the the Institute of Tourism Profeesionals (ITP) and the N-Power programme of the Federal Government aimed at empowering Nigerian youths to acquire skills they could use to set up of their business or gain meaningful employment.

    Speaking on the programme, the President, Institute of Tourism Professionals (ITP), Chief Abiodun Odusanwo said the programme is set to commence.

    According to him,  “The N-Power programme is a youth empowerment programme project, a part of the efforts of the federal government’s programme established under the National Social investment programme. Within the N-Power built programmes there are about five sectors  of focus under the vocational components. They have the construction, automotive component, agric-tech, hospitality. Within the hospitality sub-component,  they are looking into five trades or occupation. It is dedicated to build highly competent and skilled workforce of hospitality, travel and tourism professionals.

    “Young people within the ages of 18 and 35 years to acquire skills for employment. The five areas are food and production for cooks and caterers; bakery, patisserie and confectionaries, cocktail-beverages  drink mixing (mixiology) for bartenders and housekeeping . The programme is actually for 12 months, three months for training and nine months apprentice.   Odusanwo explained further that the Federal Government is spending about five billion Naira on the project to acquire required kits, safety gears, training consumables and direct investments in the trainees as training tuitions, training manual development, train the trainers programme and other related costs.  Trainees will be paid a monthly stipend of N10,000.”

    On how the Nigerians youths could benefit from the programme, Odusanwo said: “For those interested, the need to go register at the N-Power online portal  for the programme because our own component is one of the seven sectors of focus. For the hospitality we intend to train 2600 participants across the country. They are going receive training at different centres. We have 96 centres across the country and it covers every state of the federation.”

    He spoke further: “The minimum qualification to apply is to be a graduate of a secondary school and unemployed. There is no fee payable and instead of them paying, the programme will pay to the training centres  on their behalf. Even the training centres will also receive consumables that they are going to use to deliver the training, things like flour, drinks and so on. The trainees will also receive a stipend of ten thousand naira per month during the training programme directly by the N-Power administration. Learners will also achieve the National and Vocation Certificate approved by the government and awarded by the Institute of Tourism Professionals. With this qualification intheir possession, they could either progress for employment, self-employment  or further their education because it is a natioanally approved qualification .

    “In addition to some private training institutes that are running the programme, we also have all NIHOTOUR centres throughout the country, National Directotrate of Employment centres, Industrial Training Fund (ITF) throughout the country nad a large number of privately runnel training centres”.

  • Date for Indaba fair brought forward

    THE 2019 Africa’s Travel Indaba will take place from May 2  to 4 at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, Durban. The event date was brought forward by four days.

    This was as a result of the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa that the national election would take place on  May 8. This would have coincided with Indaba. A task team was set up by the CEO of South African Tourism (SA Tourism), Sisa Ntshona, to explore all available options and it was decided that moving Indaba forward was the best possible option. The task team came up with the new date.

    In arriving at the new date, the team took into account various factors and permutations in reaching the new date.

    “The national election is the cornerstone of our democracy and it is a celebration of our freedom in South Africa.

    “It’s an important date and occasion for all South Africans and we need to acknowledge and respect the date.

    “At the same time, I must express my heartfelt gratitude to the tourism industry for their understanding of the situation. I have received many calls, emails and texts with advice and support. I am really impressed to experience how the tourism sector gets together. I also want to thank the Indaba Organising Committee involved with Indaba – they are Tourism KwaZulu Natal, ICC and eThekwini (Durban Tourism) – for being accommodating with regards to the development”,Ntshona said.

    “From a Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) perspective, we presented comprehensive views of the sector to the task team and ultimately the key thing for us was to get a new date as quickly as possible,” commented Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO at TBCSA.

    “We will now work with all our trade partners to ensure that there is smooth transition into the new date as many would’ve had plans in place already for the previous date. We still have a key role to play in achieving Indaba’s objectives of selling South Africa and the continent to the rest of the world.”

    Indaba is the African continent’s biggest travel exhibition show. Last year over 7 000 delegates attended from 80 countries.

  • La Campagne enriches menu list with Omi Gaari Ijebu

    LA Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort in Ikegun village, Ibeju council area of Lagos State, has always been noted for innovation in its efforts to give visitors a memorable experience.

    Its latest move, which is part of the bid to continue to promote Africa culture and rich heritage, is the introduction of the Omi Gaari Ijebu to its blend of rich and enticing African menu list.

    Guests at the resort on February 14 were treated to the rich taste of the Nigeria food drink, which made its surprise debut on that day. The mood and atmosphere during dinner that night was like that of a party as every guest, particularly non – Africans, had a refreshing and memorable taste of the hygienically and healthy prepared local food drink.

    Omi Gaari Ijebu is a refreshing food drink that goes way back and almost extinct in most homes and practically non – existent in any of the public restaurants’ menus across the shores of Nigeria.

    But in the traditional setting then especially among the Yoruba extraction and people of Ijebu community, it was a treasured and pleasurable food drink that everyone crave for. Coming in from the hot sun, tired and stressed then served Omi Gaari Ijebu, you are immediately refreshed and satiated as well as strengthened.

    For the management of the resort, bringing back this once treasured food drink, which is served in a refined, healthy and refreshed manner, is part of promoting the diverse and healthy food culture of Nigeria to the world audience.

    Besides, it is part of the culture of popularising the cultural elements of Nigeria and this time, it traditional food culture, with the aim of not only promoting its healthy nature but its commercial value given that cassava is one of the common staple food of Nigeria from which different variant of delicacies could be derived.

  • Feast of Roma debuts in Lagos

    Roma Lagos, the first ever Roman-inspired luxury restaurant/lounge in Lagos, has hosted its maiden edition of The Feast of Roma at Roma.

    The menu consisted of a seafood boil, a carnivorous platter, a mixed platter, and a cheese and cold cuts platter that was not just the ultimate feast for the eyes because of its beautiful presentation, but  the ultimate feast for the stomach.

    Bringing a particular sweetness to the table was French luxury champagne brand, Veuve Clicquot, who partnered with Roma to organize this exclusive event.

    The dishes were carefully curated for the feast had deep and complex flavors that wowed the guests’ palettes but the shining star of the day was the seafood boil.

    In a city as diverse as Lagos, it is surprising that it is almost impossible to find a decent seafood boil, and every foodie knows that a seafood boil is one of the great communal eating experiences ever.

  • Turkish Airlines LEGO movie as inflight safety video

    Turkish Airlines has continued its partnership with The LEGO® Movie franchise with the digital debut of a new fun and original safety video. It stars characters from the latest big-screen animated LEGO adventure; The LEGO Movie 2, from Warner Bros. Pictures in theatres worldwide began last week on February 8.

    This is in tandem with the release of the eagerly anticipated sequel to the blockbuster hit The LEGO Movie, the Star Alliance airline has now debuted a sequel of their own – a second inflight safety video featuring LEGO characters, which will be shown on all flights starting March 1, 2019.  The second video features Emmet, Lucy and others from the cast of The LEGO Movie 2 in starring roles, with LEGO Batman himself at the helm, as the director of the 4 minute 27 second film.

    Alongside the animated leads, the safety video also features some of Turkish Airlines’ most exciting and recognizable destinations, bringing some of these 306 destinations – which Turkey’s national flag carrier serves – to life, brick by brick. The video journeys across five continents, visiting Bali, Moscow, San Francisco, Rome, Cape Town, Hong Kong and Tokyo, ending finally at Turkish Airlines’ iconic new home at Istanbul Airport.

    “With one of the youngest fleets in the world, Turkish Airlines continues to build on its peerless brand experience. We are excited to present our passengers with this new innovative safety video as we prepare to make our move to Istanbul Airport, designed from the ground-up to be an unprecedented experience by itself.” said M. İlker Aycı, Turkish Airlines’ Chairman of the board and the executive committee.

    Back in August 2018, Turkish Airlines debuted the first-ever LEGO passenger safety video, which was also inspired by the LEGO Movie franchise.  The video topped the viral charts with 20 million views in just one month and then brought home the gold at the 2018 Clio Entertainment Awards.

    The colorful ensemble from The LEGO Movie franchise can also be seen off screen and in the skies, livening up a specially wrapped narrow body Airbus A321-231 livery, currently serving the European routes of the flag carrier airline.

    Production on The LEGO Movie 2 safety video lasted for a total of 979 hours over the course of 4 months and among five different countries including Turkey, the USA, the UK, Canada and Australia. There were over 400 people involved in the creative process – 252 of whom were extras, in addition to the six-strong featured cast in the live action end sequence.  The live action crew consisted of over 80 people, while the animation team included almost 70.

  • Last batch of 2018 Christian pilgrims returns

    THE Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Rev Tor Uja, has said that Nigeria is the only country in the world with well-structured, organized and coordinated pilgrimage programme.

    He disclosed this while receiving the last batch of pilgrims for the 2018 pilgrimage exercise at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

    Rev Uja said that the 2018 pilgrimage was well organized, well managed. He said that every programme for the pilgrimage by the commission was properly put in place. According to him, “We did not record any mortality, we did not record any casualty and the Commission has been able to beat down abscondment to its barest”. He added: “Last year’s pilgrimage is the best”.

    The NCPC boss further said that over the years, NCPC has used pilgrimage as a tool for the nation’s spiritual uplift and international diplomacy.

    He said last year’s pilgrimage focused on prayer for the nation.  In his words, “The pilgrims  represented Nigeria and interfacing with international people”.

    Rev Uja said that Christian pilgrimage to Israel has opened up dimensions that Nigeria needs to benefit from international activities in Israel and around the world. According to him, “let the benefits and experience that you have seen in Israel benefit yourself, your family and the nation at large”.

    The number one  pilgrim officer of Nigeria said that God has blessed the State of Israel despite the fact that they are surrounded by a lot of enemies. In his words, “God is at the heart of progress and development. If God can bless Israel, He can bless Nigeria despite our challenges”.

    The NCPC helmsman affirmed that God has made every pilgrim a leader and as such urges the pilgrims to live an exemplary lifestyle that would reflect that they have gone on pilgrimage. According to him, “Proof to the world that your experience on pilgrimage has lifted you from glory to glory”.

    Rev. Uja advised  the pilgrims to individually and collectively invest in Nigeria, urging them to impact the world and replicate the things they have learnt from Israel in Nigeria and make Nigeria a better place.

  • Ethiopian Airlines CEO wins award

    The Group Chief Executive Officer the Ethiopian Airlines Group, Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, was recently recognized as one of the most influential Africans in the category of business and entrepreneurship. The event was held recently in Addis Ababa.

    The most Influential People of African Descent (MIPAD) is a global civil society initiative in support of the United Nation’s International Decade for People of African Descent, recognizing high achievers in four categories, namely, politics and governance, business and entrepreneurship, media  and  culture and religious and humanitarian.

    Regarding the recognition, Mr. Tewolde GebereMariam said: “It is an absolute honour to have received this prestigious recognition, an accolade that highlights the contribution of high achievers to Africa. First and foremost, my recognition is a tribute to the hardworking Ethiopian employees, ardent management members, the board and the government of Ethiopia at large.

    “The award attests the incredibly important role Ethiopian airlines plays in the integration of Africa through a robust business. I have always taken a great deal of pride that Ethiopian is catalyzing the much needed trade and investment, tourism, and people-to-people relations in the continent and beyond.

    “We, African business leaders, who wield an influence in Africa’s business and economic circles should promote business and entrepreneurship in collaboration with all concerned stakeholders to help ensure sustainability and development, capitalizing on one if the greatest assets of Africa, which is its young, fast-growing, and increasingly urbanized population.”

    When cut-throat competition is bound to be the order of the day in the aviation industry, under his leadership, Mr. Tewolde has demonstrated an outstanding strategic thinking and direction in spearheading the strikingly exceptional growth trajectory of Ethiopian and put the airline on global aviation industry ”game changers” map, under a 15-year growth roadmap, Vision 2025, a growth plan what the rest of the world referred as “over ambition and unattainable growth plan.”

    While much has evolved in the industry, Ethiopian has stood the test of time and achieved most of its overarching goals, going halfway through its projected 15 year plan. Ethiopian is now expanding its footprint to underserved global destinations and is serving global travelers with its signature Africa’s flavored Ethiopian hospitality onboard and in the air. True to form, the airline has also continued pushing the frontiers of aviation technology with the 21st century new generation fleet, among others. Joining the airline thirty-plus years ago, Mr. Tewolde has passed through the ladders to be at the helm and won a plethora of awards including African CEO of the Year, Best African Business Leader, The Airline Strategy Award for Regional Leadership, the 2015 International Grand Prix Special Award in Milan and the Most Gender Focused CEO Award 2015 by the Leading Women of Africa Group among others.

  • Group calls for greater focus on tourism

    Governments at all levels and the organized private sector (OPS) have been called upon to pay greater attention to tourism development in the country.

    The call was made by the Association of Nigerian Writers of Tourism (ANJET) in a press release.  ANJET, the body of organized travel journalists, writers and bloggers, lamented that despite the vast potential and comparative advantage that the country has in tourism, the government has continued to pay lip-service to the sector, not bothering to create the right policies, incentives and environment for the private sector to invest in tourism businesses.

    The association called on candidates in the coming elections-the presidential, gubernatorial and other political aspirants-to see the need to base their economic blueprint on tourism.

    According to the association, “none of them is focusing on tourism, except a few of them already in government.” ANJET said that the nation is suffering and missing out greatly from the economic and other developmental benefits that it would have reaped from the sector given that it is a money-spinning one and currently a leading sector that serious-minded countries have paid attention to following the all-time record of performance over the years.

    ANJET further said: “Tourism is a huge revenue and employment generator with $7.6 trillion revenue (about 10 per cent of global GDP) and 277 million jobs, representing one out of every 11 jobs in the world in 2014. Last year, international tourist arrivals reached 1.4 billion mark, amounting to six per cent growth, ahead of the 2020 projection.

    “African countries recorded a meagre 67 million tourists with no one sure of the numbers that visited Nigeria because there is no verifiable statistics to that effect. Besides, at the local level, less than 10 per cent of Nigerians travelled for tourism related activities while many tourism outfits closed shops due to lack of patronage and domestic airlines flew fewer passengers resulting from exorbitant fares and operational issues associated with domestic airlines.

    “To stem this tide, the travel writers are calling on the federal government to put tourism at the forefront of its economic blue print. To this end, it advocated the bringing back of the culture and tourism ministry as the present arrangement of lumping tourism with the information and culture ministry has not yielded the desired results.

    To achieve it desired purpose, they said the ministry should be manned by a true and tested professional, with vast experience in business and understands the metrics of tourism as a business and not a socio-cultural event as it has been the case with the ministry.”

    ANJET called on the ministry supervising tourism in the country to effectively and professionally coordinate the activities of the sector by working with the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to produce a tourism blue print and policy for the country as well as among others tinker with the National Tourism Master, which since it was reviewed last year no one knows the content.

    Also, the tourism writers want to see the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) come out of the closet and not live under the shadows of the ministry to take on its statutory responsibilities of developing, marketing and promoting Nigeria tourism with attention on domestic tourism but not closing the door on the international scene as witnessed in over five years as Nigeria completely absented itself from international tourism expos and meetings where it had before made huge gains.

    ANJET also wants to see NTDC take on its regulatory duty with the desired authority to stamp out the all comers affair status that tourism has recently assumed in the country. While economic solution should be proffer to the issue of registration, grading and classification of hotels and other related tourism outfits as this is very crucial to building a virile tourism industry with eyes on international best practice.

    The National Institute of Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), which has over the years allowed itself to be relegated to the background, ANJET said should be more forward-looking and take seriously its human capacity building functions by engaging with the various stakeholders, especially the hospitality industry in order to ensure that the National Occupation Standard (NOS) is effectively implemented.

    ANJET charged the various stakeholders, particularly the members of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN) and the federation itself, to shake off its lethargy and see tourism as a serious business and go all out to invest in it and engage the government seriously in funding the sector and putting in place the needed infrastructure for their businesses to thrive.

  • Royal Oaks set to boost hospitality business

    Hospitality business in Lagos has been boosted with the entry of Royal Oaks, a multimillion naira event centre located in the Lekki part of the city.

    The centre, which has just been commissioned by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has the potential of satisfying the yearnings of clients with high taste, sophistication and class.

    Expressing joy over the innovation that dots the event centre, Sanwo-Olu said: “This facility has added another landmark achievement to the state at a point when Lagos is looking to become a preferred destination of choice amongst other mega cities.”

    While addressing guests at the grand opening, the Chief Executive Officer of Royal Oaks Event Centre, Mrs. Augusta Ikpea-Enaholo, noted that the facility was built as a measure to shore up the hospitality business, with a view to offering clients value, satisfaction and a remarkable event experience.

    According to her, “the business is premised on delivering top-of-the-line services to customers with sparing prices.”

    She said: “What we have here surpasses your regular event centre, as we have taken the initiative to create entrance, exit and restrooms dedicated to the disabled.

    “Royal Oaks was thoughtfully built to accommodate a variety of events from weddings, exhibitions, product launches and activations, to fashion shows, funeral celebrations, conferences and what have you.

    “We offer a unique and serene atmosphere with hundreds of gold and silver gilded chairs, round banquet tables, rectangular tables and perfect working air-conditioning systems.

    “The event centre is structured to cater for intimate, small and large gatherings with perfectly structured partitions that guarantee maximum functionality of space.”

    She said the initiative was propelled by the recognition of the fact that the task of nation- building cannot be left in the hands of government alone, adding that “Royal Oaks decided to embark on this project as part of our modest contributions to boosting economic development through the creation of job opportunities for our teeming populace, amongst others.

    “This facility is a humble testimony to the fact that faith in God and perseverance in diligent work and self-development remain the true path to success and greatness.”

  • Abuja craft village for transformation

    The Director–General (DG) of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Segun Runsewe, has said the Abuja Arts and Craft Village will soon be transformed into a modern, state-of-the-art cultural market.

    The DG made this known while conducting some journalists around the facility which had been under lock and key for some time.

    He added that upon the completion of the rehabilitation work currently ongoing, the cultural market would be ready for good business and open to Nigerians to take full advantage.

    Rolling out some of the innovations and ideas to reposition the place, Otunba Runsewe said there would be a functional information centre at the entrance of the market, a reputable bank with three ATM machines, a pharmacy, mini- children’s park, restaurants, amphitheatre and a skill acquisition centre, among many other facilities.

    Speaking to press men, the NCAC boss said when the renovation is concluded, eligible Nigerians will be allocated shops after profiling to ensure credibility and fairness.

    He said the present management had planned to make the market a fully cultural market which would be anchored purely on handicrafts and culture-related items.

    Fielding questions from journalists, Runsewe explained that the market would comprise several sections, a car park area, investment forum section and the main cultural market section which would boast no less than 165 shops that would in turn provide jobs for at least a thousand Nigerians.

    The DG  hinted there would be provision for night market which would be done every last Friday of the month, maintaining that the general idea is to retain the cultural aesthetics of the market while fully exploring the economic potentials to empower Nigerians.