THE ancient city of Ile-Ife, the ancestral home of the Yoruba worldwide, has always appealed to local and inbound tourists. With a monarch with deep passion for tourism and culture, a first-class resort and a rich throve of history, heritage sites and monuments, Ile-Ife is set to make gains in terms of tourism receipt. This was what the Nigeria Association of Tourism Operators (NATOP) set out do in Ile-Ife.
The association held its 2019 Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Ife Grand Resorts and Leisure and used the opportunity to tour the heritage sites with a view to generating packaged tours for Ile- Ife. The theme of the AGM was: ‘Impact of Culture, Partnership and Governance in Nigerian Tourism Development’.
In her opening address on the occasion, the NATOP President, Hajia Bilkisu Abdul, said the decision of NATOP to come to Ile- Ife for its AGM was part of its deliberate efforts of the Nigerian tour operators to promote destinations in the country.
She said the association had held past AGMs in Calabar, Cross River State and Jos, Plateau State.
In his address , the Board of Trustees Chairman of NATOP, Mr Nkereuwem Onung, praised the Ooni for his giant strides in tourism and called for greater co-operation between the tour operators and the monarch. Nkereuwem said the private sector needs to persuade government to give attention to tourism.
His words: “There is need for the private sector to persuade government to give attention to tourism. There is, therefore, the need for us to join hands together to grow tourism and pressure the government of President Buhari to prioritize tourism. We believe that the low hanging fruits of tourism will grow our GDP.”
Among the dignitaries at the NATOP AGM was the Director-General of the National Council of Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Segun Runsewe. Runsewe commended the tour operators for holding their AGM in the culturally and historically important city of Ile-Ife.
The traditional ruler of Ile Ife, the Ooni of Ife, His Imperial Majesty Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, was happy with the presence of the tour operators. He praised the NCAC boss, Otunba Runsewe, for the high value and premium promotion enjoyed by Nigerian culture under his watch.
The Ooni, who bestrides the cradle of the Yoruba race and sits on the oldest traditional throne in Black Africa, commended Runsewe for pushing the quest for a new culture economy to the front burner of national discourse, making Nigerians very proud.
“I can see everything turning around for culture and tourism in Nigeria very soon and I stand to appreciate Runsewe’s undivided attention and dedication to see the sector blossom profitably” he said.
The Ooni, who is also a frontline investor in tourism economy with the Ife Grand Resort planted to drive domestic tourism, called on the private sector to join hands with Runsewe to change and sustain the positive narratives for cultural tourism as poverty buster and employment influencer.
Earlier in his address, Otunba Runsewe, who led industry operators to appreciate the oba for hosting NATOP delegates, praised the vision of the Ooni for transforming the geo-tourism and economic landscape of Ile-Ife through the luxury resort.
“This place is a masterpiece planted by a visionary leader and I am encouraged by this very significant intervention which represents the very picture of what we want to see in Nigeria from our people and other traditional rulers,”Otunba Runsewe.
To further open the resort and the entire Ife land tourism architecture to visitors, the NCAC boss told the Ooni to use his goodwill to attract the construction of a light rail from Lagos to Ile-Ife.
THE President of the National Association of Tour Operators (NATOP), Mr. Nkereuwem Onung, has called on President Mohammadu Buhari to bring back the tourism ministry. He made the call during the celebration of the World Tourism Day.
Onung said that the ministry should be restored because its revival would promote the value chain of tourism, and that the federal tourism ministry belonged with the national parks. He added that the country needed to develop the Nigerian dream and show pride in the its heritage. He commended the Change Begins with Me mantra of the government.
He noted that the industry needed to look at what had been achieved and promote them. He said: “We need to look at what has been done in domestic tourism and promote them. Projects like ‘Seven Wonders of Nigeria’ need to be promoted. We need to articulate a workable master plan. It is time to look at infrastructure, look at our tourism assets and give the value. Nigerian tourism assets are viable. It is wrong to say that we don’t have viable assets. We need to look at infrastructure, look at our tourism assets and give value.”
Onung in addition commended the Cross River State government for the steps so far taken in tourism.
Also present at the celebration was the South Africa Tourism (SAT) team. The team was led by the regional director for West Africa, SAT, Lehlohonolo Pitso who said that his agency markets South Africa and the rest of the continent while it cross markets Nigeria as a destination.
On the state of tourism in Nigeria, tourism expert and the organiser of the only travel fair in West Africa, Akwaaba Travel fair, Mr. Ikechi Uko, said it had regressed to the pre-Obasanjo era. He said: “The private sector is in disarray, state governments are not motivated to do what they are supposed to do. That was the state we were in 1998. We are no more in any travel exhibition anywhere in the world. We are not participating even in local events. So, we have gone back to where we were in 1998.
“It is a sad commentary. Obasanjo came, created a ministry, tourism masterplan, Presidential Council on Tourism (PCT), Abuja Carnival, a more energised council on tourism, and tourism started booming. He empowered the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), but today, masterplan is nowhere, PCT is nowhere, council on tourism is nowhere, the Abuja Carnival is nowhere, the NTDC is nowhere.
“So, practically everything we know as tourism in Nigeria has disappeared. This is because of the people who got into government, those who took over the administration of tourism in Nigeria, those at the ministry and at NTDC, they destroyed what they met. They did not move us to a better position. They took us backwards. So, some of the small achievements that we have notched were lost. They were all frittered away.“
Uko said there was a need to go back to what was done in 1999, to bring tourism back to where it ought to be. He said the country needed a tourism ministry that would bring every body together.
Former Director General, Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), Otunba Segun Runsewe, has called on tourism practitioners in Nigeria to wake up to their responsibilities by holding the leaders of the Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria (FTAN) accountable.
Runsewe was reacting to the recent National Association of Tour Operators (NATOP) recognition award presented to him in Calabar.
He noted that the industry leadership needs total overhauling in view of its lack of presence and very poor advocacy for tourism change in Nigeria, particularly at this time when Nigeria needs help to diversify its economy.
Runsewe, who was a recipient of NATOP award for major tourism contribution during his tenure in office, noted that time has come to rebrand the industry, appreciating the fact that tourism is better than oil because it is the highest employer of labour in the world.
He however commended NATOP for showing robust capacity to analyse national tourism issues and also for having a sense of history for choosing to confer an award on him for his modest contribution to growth of Nigerian tourism.
In a letter to the president of NATOP dated 19th February, and personally signed by him, Otunba Runsewe, who is now the Chairman, Golf Garden Waterfront, an upscale golf sports tourism resort in Abuja and first of its kind in Africa, stated that NATOP has always played vital roles in setting the tourism message right in Nigeria.
In the year 2000, a group of tourism enthusiasts under the aegis of the National Association of Tour Operators (NATOP) took a “faith visit” to Calabar, the Cross River State capital. They were led by the then President of NATOP, Mrs. Fatimah Garbati. The idea was to look at tourism prospects in Cross River State and possibly advise the government of the state, which had shown enthusiasm, to go the way of tourism, how to go about.
It was a visit that changed the fortune of tourism in Nigeria and the process midwifed what has become Nigeria’s first tourism destination. It was from the meeting of NATOP operators and the then first lady of Cross River, Mrs. Onari Duke, that the annual “Africa Biggest Street Party”, Calabar Carnival, came to fruition. Other tourism projects equally followed.
On Thursday, February 11, at the banquet hall of the Transcorp Hotel, Calabar, a happy Mrs. Garbati, casting her mind back to the teething stage of Destination Cross River, exclaimed: “ We never knew it was going to be as big as this.” Calabar has become the annual holiday destination for many Nigerian and foreigners and they come to participate in the 16 km-dance train call Carnival Calabar.
The city itself has taken the hue of a tourist destination. From the Marina leisure complex, historical sites like the walls of the colonial prison, the National Museum complex, the Millennium Park, the old Calabar areas like the Duke town, the city has become the tourism capital of Nigeria. Even during the low season, the non-festival period, the streets are kept spotless. The traffic is nothing to be worried about. The food culture is alive kicking.
It was because of this that NATOP returned 16 years after to the city they helped transform. It was for the annual general meeting with the theme, “Nigerian Tourism: The missing link in the diversified economy”.
Speaking on the topic, renowned economist, Professor Pat Utomi, went down memory to bemoan how the country’s over reliance on oil has destroyed Nigeria’s economic growth. He insisted that it was a blessing that the global price of oil has fallen as it makes the country think of alternatives.
NATOP President Nkereuwem Onung said holding the association’s AGM in Calabar was like home coming for them.
He said: “ Nigeria is the biggest suppliers of tourists in the continent of Africa. Even though we have more of outbound tourists, that is how it is supposed to be. We have different classes of tour operators, the outbound and in-bound. Like you will agree, even though tourism has suffered a setback in the continent last year, we have a shrink of three per cent in terms of arrivals, as against a four per cent increase of the previous year.
“What we are saying is that despite the setback, NCAA still told us that Nigerians spent about 1.5 billion dollars on airline tickets last year. That makes us a veritable partner in the industry. We have always been at the forefront of tourism, no matter how you look at it. So, the AGM this year is to give our tour operators a new direction.
“That new direction is that we know most of you are marketing other destinations, but we need to also bring people to Nigeria which is a core mandate of the association . Beyond regulating the way tour operators behave in terms of fair practices and all of that, we also need to market Nigeria as a destination.
“We went to look at what happened in Calabar in the year 2000 when NATOP, with the Cross River State government kick-started what is today Destination Cross River. NATOP members were in the forefront of doing that. We also want to make everybody understand that if we did that with Cross River, we can do that with any other state that is willing to partner us.
“Outside partnering Cross River State to give birth to destination that is creating impact, you will agree that NATOP was part of the Seven Wonders of Nigeria. I think that what we did was that we did our best to say look, we have qualified destinations in Nigeria that is worth marketing.
“We have, as a body, participated in the World Travel Market in 2012, the first by private operators other than NTDC staff . In 2012, Otunba Segun Runsewe accorded us that privilege whereby we had tour operators in their number manning the Nigeria stand, asking questions and networking. All these, among others, were what we tried to do.”
This, she said, informed her presence at the event since it was the tour operators that would package tourists to cultural events in the country. She used the opportunity to unfold the pet project agency.
She said: “The dwindling oil price and its attendant effect on the Nigerian economy has again brought to the fore the imperatives and urgency to revisit and commit ourselves to the diversification of the national economy.
“This is why our discussion here this is very important as those of us in the industry must help create the awareness and knowledge that is required to place the creative industry on the same pedestal like oil, solid mineral and agriculture.
“This is necessary because we need to change the perception and the way culture is viewed, especially by policymakers and encourage them to see and appreciate culture of which the creative industry is part of an economic prism. Like any other economic sector, it needs support, it needs investment, it needs infrastructure and above all, it needs the conducive environment to grow and develop. That is the crux of my paper today.
“Allow me speak first, of the National Council for Arts and Culture, our mandate, what we do and our plans for the future especially as it concerns tourism. The National Council for Arts and Culture was created in 1975 as a front-line agency of the now Federal Ministry of Information and Culture.
“It has the responsibility for the overall co-ordination, development and promotion of the living arts and culture in Nigeria. As part of its core mandate, NCAC is saddled with the responsibility to foster the development, appreciation and promotion of literary, visual and performing arts and culture. It is also expected to identify, develop and promote the country’s tangible and intangible cultural heritage.
Indeed l should inform this August gathering that NCAC has a very ambitious plan to introduce more specialized festivals between now and 2017.
These are: The National Durbar Festival; the National Boat Regatta Festivals; the National Masquerade Festival; the Festival of Nigeria Contemporary Arts; the National Folk Songs Festival and traditional textiles and fashion fair.
“The rational for these are obvious or should be clear. First, it is in fulfilment of the core mandate of NCAC, which is the coordination, development and promotion of the living arts and culture of Nigeria. Secondly, festivals are today recognized as one of the fastest growing form of tourism and a number of countries continue to effectively utilize their festivals to attract tourists to their countries.
“This is so because, cultural festivals are basic ingredients that animate and promote tourism. Culturally, festivals enrich cultural experiences and develop support and audiences for culture. They engage with many arts forms, including discovering new ones, styles and genres and help to promote the cultural and creative industries. improves on local infrastructure.”
The tour operators elected new executives to pilot the affairs of the body. They are: “President – Nkereuwem Onung (Remlords Tours); Vice President -, Muyiwa Salami ( Dvine Tour Brokers); General Secretary, Ime Udo (Leadway Tours); Treasurer , Bolaji Mustapha (Get Centre). Ex- officio members are Ikechi Uko (Akwaaba/ATQ Tours); Fatima Garbati(Speed Tours), Abiodun Sanni (Tourways International); Chinyere Umuasiegbu (Globallinks Travels) and Ladi Jemi – Alade (Jemi Alade Tours).
In the year 2000, a group of tourism enthusiasts under the aegis of the National Association of Tour Operators (NATOP) took a “faith visit” to Calabar, the Cross River State capital. They were led by the then President of NATOP, Mrs. Fatimah Garbati. The idea was to look at tourism prospects in Cross River State and possibly advise the government of the state, which had shown enthusiasm, to go the way of tourism, how to go about.
It was a visit that changed the fortune of tourism in Nigeria and the process midwifed what has become Nigeria’s first tourism destination. It was from the meeting of NATOP operators and the then first lady of Cross River, Mrs. Onari Duke, that the annual “Africa Biggest Street Party”, Calabar Carnival, came to fruition. Other tourism projects equally followed.
On Thursday, February 11, at the banquet hall of the Transcorp Hotel, Calabar, a happy Mrs. Garbati, casting her mind back to the teething stage of Destination Cross River, exclaimed: “ We never knew it was going to be as big as this.” Calabar has become the annual holiday destination for many Nigerian and foreigners and they come to participate in the 16 km-dance train call Carnival Calabar.
The city itself has taken the hue of a tourist destination. From the Marina leisure complex, historical sites like the walls of the colonial prison, the National Museum complex, the Millennium Park, the old Calabar areas like the Duke town, the city has become the tourism capital of Nigeria. Even during the low season, the non-festival period, the streets are kept spotless. The traffic is nothing to be worried about. The food culture is alive kicking.
It was because of this that NATOP returned 16 years after to the city they helped transform. It was for the annual general meeting with the theme, “Nigerian Tourism: The missing link in the diversified economy”.
Prof. Utomi (middle) and some participants at the NATOP AGM
Speaking on the topic, renowned economist, Professor Pat Utomi, went down memory to bemoan how the country’s over reliance on oil has destroyed Nigeria’s economic growth. He insisted that it was a blessing that the global price of oil has fallen as it makes the country think of alternatives.
NATOP President Nkereuwem Onung said holding the association’s AGM in Calabar was like home coming for them.
He said: “ Nigeria is the biggest suppliers of tourists in the continent of Africa. Even though we have more of outbound tourists, that is how it is supposed to be. We have different classes of tour operators, the outbound and in-bound. Like you will agree, even though tourism has suffered a setback in the continent last year, we have a shrink of three per cent in terms of arrivals, as against a four per cent increase of the previous year.
“What we are saying is that despite the setback, NCAA still told us that Nigerians spent about 1.5 billion dollars on airline tickets last year. That makes us a veritable partner in the industry. We have always been at the forefront of tourism, no matter how you look at it. So, the AGM this year is to give our tour operators a new direction.
“That new direction is that we know most of you are marketing other destinations, but we need to also bring people to Nigeria which is a core mandate of the association . Beyond regulating the way tour operators behave in terms of fair practices and all of that, we also need to market Nigeria as a destination.
“We went to look at what happened in Calabar in the year 2000 when NATOP, with the Cross River State government kick-started what is today Destination Cross River. NATOP members were in the forefront of doing that. We also want to make everybody understand that if we did that with Cross River, we can do that with any other state that is willing to partner us.
“Outside partnering Cross River State to give birth to destination that is creating impact, you will agree that NATOP was part of the Seven Wonders of Nigeria. I think that what we did was that we did our best to say look, we have qualified destinations in Nigeria that is worth marketing.
“We have, as a body, participated in the World Travel Market in 2012, the first by private operators other than NTDC staff . In 2012, Otunba Segun Runsewe accorded us that privilege whereby we had tour operators in their number manning the Nigeria stand, asking questions and networking. All these, among others, were what we tried to do.”
Among those present on the occasion was the Director-General of the National Council of Arts and Culture (NCAC), Mrs. Dayo Keshi. In a paper she presented, she harped on the need to sell Nigerian tourism using culture.
This, she said, informed her presence at the event since it was the tour operators that would package tourists to cultural events in the country. She used the opportunity to unfold the pet project agency.
She said: “The dwindling oil price and its attendant effect on the Nigerian economy has again brought to the fore the imperatives and urgency to revisit and commit ourselves to the diversification of the national economy.
“Today, there is a lot about government’s commitment and determination to develop the solid mineral sector, but very little is being said about the creative industry. Yet, this is an industry with enormous potential to contribute significantly to the diversification of the Nigeria’s economy by creating employment and generating wealth, especially among the rural population.
“This is why our discussion here this is very important as those of us in the industry must help create the awareness and knowledge that is required to place the creative industry on the same pedestal like oil, solid mineral and agriculture.
“This is necessary because we need to change the perception and the way culture is viewed, especially by policymakers and encourage them to see and appreciate culture of which the creative industry is part of an economic prism. Like any other economic sector, it needs support, it needs investment, it needs infrastructure and above all, it needs the conducive environment to grow and develop. That is the crux of my paper today.
“Allow me speak first, of the National Council for Arts and Culture, our mandate, what we do and our plans for the future especially as it concerns tourism. The National Council for Arts and Culture was created in 1975 as a front-line agency of the now Federal Ministry of Information and Culture.
“It has the responsibility for the overall co-ordination, development and promotion of the living arts and culture in Nigeria. As part of its core mandate, NCAC is saddled with the responsibility to foster the development, appreciation and promotion of literary, visual and performing arts and culture. It is also expected to identify, develop and promote the country’s tangible and intangible cultural heritage.
“Furthermore, NCAC is expected to create skills acquisition Centers, vocational centers and crafts clusters including, packaging and promotion of festivals all towards developing Nigeria’s Creative Industries.
“Over the last forty years, The National Council for Arts and Culture has continued to leverage on Nigeria’s arts and crafts to serve as veritable resource for promoting national unity and integration as well as a catalyst for job and wealth creation. This, it has achieved through its programs and activities especially with its flagship programs, the annual National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFEST) involving all the States of the federation and the FCT.
“The African Arts and Crafts Expo (AFAC) involves other African countries. Last year about fifteen African countries participated in the 4th edition and our aim is to scale up the expo both in participation and in content to attract increased participation from the continent. Our objective is to eventually make it a continental affair that will gain global recognition. If we succeed, l have no doubt that Nigeria will become the Mecca of arts and crafts practitioners with attendant benefit for our artists.”
Indeed l should inform this August gathering that NCAC has a very ambitious plan to introduce more specialized festivals between now and 2017.
These are: The National Durbar Festival; the National Boat Regatta Festivals; the National Masquerade Festival; the Festival of Nigeria Contemporary Arts; the National Folk Songs Festival and traditional textiles and fashion fair.
“The rational for these are obvious or should be clear. First, it is in fulfilment of the core mandate of NCAC, which is the coordination, development and promotion of the living arts and culture of Nigeria. Secondly, festivals are today recognized as one of the fastest growing form of tourism and a number of countries continue to effectively utilize their festivals to attract tourists to their countries.
“This is so because, cultural festivals are basic ingredients that animate and promote tourism. Culturally, festivals enrich cultural experiences and develop support and audiences for culture. They engage with many arts forms, including discovering new ones, styles and genres and help to promote the cultural and creative industries.
“Its social impact includes intangible things that cannot be quantified financially or with economic impact while preserving the heritage and strengthening local values and traditions as well as local community pride. It promotes cultural diversity and community cohesion. Besides, It has potential to create jobs, generate wealth and revenue and promote tourism. It increases knowledge of the country, state or region and possibilities for investment. It drives the construction of new facilities and improves on local infrastructure.”
The tour operators elected new executives to pilot the affairs of the body. They are: “President – Nkereuwem Onung (Remlords Tours); Vice President -, Muyiwa Salami ( Dvine Tour Brokers); General Secretary, Ime Udo (Leadway Tours); Treasurer , Bolaji Mustapha (Get Centre). Ex- officio members are Ikechi Uko (Akwaaba/ATQ Tours); Fatima Garbati(Speed Tours), Abiodun Sanni (Tourways International); Chinyere Umuasiegbu (Globallinks Travels) and Ladi Jemi – Alade (Jemi Alade Tours).
The Nigerian Association of Tour Operators, NATOP, has unveiled plans for its annual general meeting, in Calabar, Cross River State.
The event slated for February 11 in Calabar with the theme, “Nigerian Tourism: The missing link in a diversified economy” is set to re-position and restore the Nigerian tourism industry by taking it to a greater height.
Speaking during a press briefing in Lagos, the president of NATOP and chairman of Remlords Tours and Car Hire Services, Mr Nkereuweng Onung, disclosed that NATOP wants to give the tour operators a new direction by getting them also to market the destination Nigeria at the AGM in Calabar.
Mr Onung stated that NATOP is inviting the owners of tourism products to come and meet with the tour operators so as to create a synergy.
He observed that Nigerian tour operators have been at the forefront of supplying tourists to other countries, stressing that the development has to change.
According to him, “Nigerian tour operators are the biggest suppliers of tourists on the continent. In 2015, Africa suffered a 3percent loss on arrivals down from a 4 percent annual growth in the past years. Yet despite a shrinking spending power due to failing oil prices, a lot of Nigerians still travelled abroad. The interim figure from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA showed that more than $1.5billion was spent on international flight tickets last year”.
The chairman of Remlords explained further that NATOP chose Calabar for the rebirth because it was in the state in the year 2000 that NATOP through the support of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, ADC, British Airways and Mrs Onari Duke helped to drive the rise of Cross River as a tourism destination.
”At this AGM, NATOP will honour those visionary members and supporters who worked hard to create the tourism vision that Cross River implemented and delivered. Outside Cross River State, NATOP has partnered with 7 Wonders of Nigeria to promote the destination Nigeria. For the first time in Nigeria in 2012, the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, NTDC involved Nigeria tour operators in the World Travel Market, WTM, NATOP also partnered annually with Akwaaba African Travel Market to bring people to Nigeria”, the NATOP President said.
FOLLOWING the successful curtailment of the spread of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in Nigeria, the Association of Nigeria Tour Operators (NATOP) has commended the Federal Government and Lagos State government alongside other governors for the prompt and effective manner they worked together to prevent the spread of the deadly disease in the country even as its warmed that Americans and other European currently battling to hand the disease to treat Nigerians with dignity and respect for human rights.
In a press release signed by the president of the umbrella body for travel operators in the country, Mr. Nkwereuwem Onung, the body commended the prompt attention giving to tackling the matter and information machinery deployed by the government to enlighten and educate Nigeria on the matter.
The body said for the first time in a long while Nigerians witnessed a demonstration of something and positive about the Nigerian government, describing the manner the disease was handled as ”efficiency in governance,” and the fact that once determined the Nigerian government can actually go the full hug to deliver good governance to the people.
According to Onung, the partnership by the Lagos State government and the federal government is a pointer to the fact that if all Nigerians and government at all levels lay aside their differences and politics that efficiency and the promotion of public good and interest can be achieved in a question of time.
He, therefore, called on all Nigerians to joins hands in building a virile and united nation where brotherliness and common good of the people thrive, adding that this is the only way that the country can overcome it many challenges and build a sound economic base for the people. Onung who is also the chairman of Remlord Tours and Transports Services, stressed that even though it members suffered great losses from it following the cancellations of business deals earlier nick but that it was happy that the government effectively curtailed the spread and that today Nigeria is free and it members and others can now hope to get their businesses back on track again.
With American and other Western and Europe countries that battling to stave off the spread of the disease in their soil, the tour operating body called for caution in the manner that they treat Nigerians travelling in and out of their countries.
He said that Nigerians deserved to be accord their full human rights and not seen as the carriers of EVD as the epidemic is a global once and not confined to West Africa countries alone as many people believe. The body then called for a global approach to be adopted by the western world, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the United Nations (UN) in the handling of the matter otherwise it would assume an alarming proportion.
