The Nation Newspaper

Tag: tourism

  • From the Villa: Ending Nigerians’ medical tourism abroad

    From the Villa: Ending Nigerians’ medical tourism abroad

    Every year, Nigeria continues to lose huge sums of money when her citizens travel abroad for medical attention.

    While the actions of some of these Nigerians can be justified because of lack of standard equipment or personnel for the particular medical service needed by the individual, others simply prefer the services abroad as they do not want to risk their lives in the course of being handled by local medics.

    In 2012, the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) said Nigeria lost $500 million on annual medical tourism by Nigerians abroad.

    The NMA President, Dr. Osahon Enabulele had maintained that over 5,000 Nigerians travel out every month to India, Egypt and Ghana to treat ailments that could mostly be handled in Nigeria.

    “Indeed, it has been shown that India earns over $260 million from medical tourism from Nigeria alone,” he said.

    He specifically challenged Nigerian political office holders to go beyond lip-service in order to change the story in Nigeria.

    Challenging politicians in 2012, he said: “Indeed, the NMA is convinced that if President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Vice-President Namadi Sambo, the Senate President, Senator David Mark, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, members of the Federal Executive Council, Governors, Deputy Governors, and other political office holders, make it a point of duty to stand on the same queue with ordinary Nigerians to seek medical care and conduct health checks in public hospitals in Nigeria, the confidence of ordinary Nigerians and foreigners in Nigeria’s healthcare system will be re-ignited and bolstered.”

    But almost two years after the call, nothing seems to have changed in Nigeria’s healthcare system.

    Speaking at the Presidential Summit on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) at the Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja Monday last week, President Goodluck Jonathan, through the Vice-President Namadi Sambo, further lamented the capital flight arising from medical tourism of Nigerians abroad.

    He said: “We still have the largest number of people in Africa and the developed world travelling out of the country to seek healthcare services. The scale of capital flight lost to medical tourism is enormous, not justifiable and needs to be speedily addressed for the survival and development of our local health practitioners and industry.

    “Government is not unaware of the numerous challenges limiting the attainment of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in our country and the importance of political commitment in surmounting these challenges.

    “The World Bank’s case study of 11 countries that have made significant progress in UHC, affirmed that political leadership and commitment is the key driving force for achieving UHC.”

    Speaking at the summit, the Ondo State Governor, Olusegun Mimiko, citing the successes being recorded in his state, urged government to go beyond lip-service and show the necessary political will needed to attain universal health coverage in the country.

    According to him, due to political will, his state is recording success in a programme called ‘Abiye’ for safe motherhood, which is done in partnership with the World Bank.

    He said: “The programme essentially is about tracing every pregnant woman from conception to delivery, using very simple modern methods. We also trace them to the communities through primary healthcare provider. We have been doing all of this and completely eliminating financial barriers through budgetary allocation, through pooling of funds from partners.

    “Strengthening the core system is also very important because no matter how much you put into the system, if the health system is not strengthened and accountable, you may not get the output you desire.

    “In two years of ‘Abiye’, we were able to increase percentage of attendance by more than 80 per cent. By now, it must be over 1,000 per cent. We were able to reduce the unit cost of care. The cost of taking care of a pregnant woman has been reduced to N4, 000, including caesarean delivery. That means if I give you N40, 000, I’m expecting 10 live babies. It is cost-based analysis; you can measure your outcome.

    “That means that if you eliminate financial barriers, if you engender confidence in the core system, what you spend to take care of each patient goes down. The cost you incur in complications gets reduced.

    “It will also interest you, Mr. President, that in four years, facility-based figures, with clear empirical evidence, we were able to reduce maternal mortality rate by more than 70 per cent. What that means is that with political will, with the necessary backings and technology, we can achieve universal health coverage. “It is not all about money; it is about effective and efficient management of resources that we have. What we need is political will, effective and efficient modernisation of our health system.”

  • SA Tourism opens West African marketing office

    THE South African Tourism Minister, Mr. Marthinus Van Schalkwyk, accompanied by Nigeria’s Tourism, Culture and National Orientation Minister, Chief Edem Duke, officially opened the very first South African Tourism marketing office on the African continent in Lagos, Nigeria.

    Addressing the West African travel trade and guests in attendance, Minister Van Schalkwyk said that South African Tourism’s new home in Lagos serves to confirm his country’s support for increased economic cooperation between the South African and West African regions.

    “As a nation, we see the special and longstanding relationship between Nigeria and South Africa as pivotal towards maintaining an Africa that is economically vibrant and resilient and an Africa that grows through partnerships between nations,” said Minister van Schalkwyk.

    Continuing, he said: “Key to creating economic vibrancy and resilience is working together to develop industries that have the potential to contribute meaningfully to our GDPs and job creation on the continent. Tourism is certainly one of such industry. Investing in our tourism network on the continent is not only indicative of our commitment to African co-operation, but it also makes good business sense.

    “We’ve experienced positive growth figures out of West Africa; a total of 73,282 Nigerian tourists visited South Africa last year, marking a 13.8% increase from 2011. At the end of June 2013, Nigerian tourists arrivals had continued to grow on a strong trajectory with 15.9% during the first six months of this year.

    “Likewise, tourists arrivals from Ghana to South Africa grew by 23.8% in 2012, when South Africa welcomed 22,953 Ghanaian tourists. Up to end of June 2013, arrivals from Ghana were growing at 27.3%, to 13, 663 tourist arrivals for the six-month period. The steady growth in both markets makes this region very valuable to us,” Minister van Schalkwyk said.

    The opening of the Nigerian office comes on the heels of South African Tourism having officially extended an invitation to the rest of Africa to showcase the continent by exhibiting at the annual Tourism INDABA, held in Durban in May every year. South African Tourism has also invited more than 500 hosted buyers to INDABA 2014; offering exhibitors the opportunity to promote their destination at the heart of Africa’s biggest, most established and best-attended travel trade exhibition.

    In addition, an announcement at the end of last year, of collaboration between INDABA and the bespoke We Are Africa tradeshow (that takes place days before INDABA) exponentially increases the exposure to top-quality buyers for exhibitors at both travel trade shows.

  • Key events in tourism in 2013

    Key events in tourism in 2013

    SINCE the creation of the Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation in 1999, tourism has not seen a year with such dramatic developments with far-reaching impact on the industry as 2013. Some of the events were routine. Others had total impact on the administration of tourism and tourism establishments in the country.

    The first quarter of the year was uneventful. It was as if the steady rhythm which tourism had assumed in the last couple of years would continue. It was during the second quarter of the year when things started happening in quick succession. It kicked with the industry changing ruling of the Supreme Court. Supreme Court judgment on hotel licensing and regulation

    Before the Supreme Court judgment on hotel licensing and regulation, the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), by virtue of the NTDC Act of 1992 setting it up, had assumed the responsibility for registering, grading and classifying hotels and other tourism establishments in the country. Although there had been muffled protests by some states, that did stop the NTDC, through its zonal consultants, from conducting the annual hotels registration.

    However, Lagos State enacted the Lagos State Hotel Licensing Law 2003 (and its amendment) and the Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption Law 2009 which empowered Lagos State to make laws to regulate, standardize and grade tourism operations which was previously the exclusive preserve of a federal government agency, the NTDC.

    The debate on the constitutionality of the Lagos State Hotel Licensing Law 2003 (and its amendment) and the Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption Law 2009 enacted by Lagos State was finally laid to rest by the Supreme Court on 19 July, 2013.

    The apex court dismissed the Federal Government’s suit and delivered its judgment in favour of Lagos state. It was the view of the court that the NTDC Act went beyond its powers as stated in the Exclusive Legislative List of the Constitution which is to regulate “tourist traffic”. This effectively challenged the constitutionality of the NTDC’s powers to unilaterally regulate and control hotels and tourism in Nigeria. The court, therefore, validated the respective laws of Lagos State.

    The implication of the July 19 ruling by the Supreme Court had far-reaching implications for operators of hotel, restaurants, bars and so on as they now all fall under the regulation of the Lagos State Government. This, according to lawyers, means any building used as a guest house, inn, lodge, motel, tavern, night club, restaurant, event centre and any other place for the sale of food and drink on the premises of a hotel and includes fast food outlets and restaurants with the areas that the state can legislate on.

    Change of barton at NTDC

    May also saw the removal of the Otunba Segun Runsewe as the Director-General of the NTDC and his replacement with Mrs. Sally Mbanefo, a banker. Runsewe had been appointed the boss of the NTDC in 2006 after a successful performance as the head of the Media Committee during the Commonwealth Ministers of Tourism Meeting in 2004 and the maiden Abuja Carnival in 2005 as Director of Marketing and Publicity. His appointment by then President Olusegun Obasanjo was not surprising to many people due to his achievements. His drive to promote tourism in Nigeria was predicated on the mantra of Practical Tourism and the catch phrase of Tourism is Life. He created awareness both locally and at international fora about huge tourism potential in the country. He also supported the development of cultural tourism products through his direct support and participation in festivals such as Argungu Fishing Festival, the New Yam Festival in Igbo Ukwu, Nwoyo Festival in Taraba State and many others. The period, through his promotion of Nigeria, also saw the influx of top world hospitality brands into the country. Between 2006 to 2013, he was the face of tourism in Nigeria and it was a surprise to many when the government announced his removal.

    Runsewe was replace the by Mrs. Sally Mbanefo, a seasoned banker who promised to build on the achievements of Runsewe and take the industry to a greater heights. The NTDC boss is a 1986 graduate of the University of Lagos with about 25 years experience in banking, manufacturing and oil and gas sectors. Till her appointment, she was an Executive Director at Keystone Bank Limited.

    FTAN’s new exco

    After being in the saddle as the head of the apex tourism body for four years, Chief Samuel Alabi’s tenure as the President of the Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria (FTAN) came to an end. In an election held at Nanet Suites in Abuja, Chief Tomi Akingbogun was elected as the new FTAN president. The election was on July 31.

    Intercontinental Hotel’s inroad into Nigeria

    The 23-storey-building is regarded by many as the first truly five-star hotel in Nigeria. It is a N30 billion five-star hotel funded by Skye and Wema banks. The hotel was opened on October 6 this year.

    The hotel, located on Victoria Island, has 352 rooms. The hotel was declared open by the Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola. He described the hotel as “a worthy investment that has further closed the gap in the deficit of world-class hospitality infrastructure in the state.”

    Beyond the empowerment and development of skilled professionals in the hospitality sector, the governor said the five-star hotel complemented the Lagos mega city vision and urged more investors to take advantage of the friendly environment the state was offering them to expand their businesses.

    Ramesh Valechha, chairman, Milan Group, said the luxurious hotel was a commitment and right investment made in the economy of Lagos State and Nigerian hospitality industry at large. He said InterContinental Lagos was possible through a partnership funding by Skye Bank and Wema Bank that saw the need to assist in getting a five-star property for the growing high-profile guests that deserving quality accommodation in Nigeria’s commercial capital.

    With 650 Nigerians and 24 expatriates as employees, the chairman said the hotel was poised to offer world-class hospitality offerings, professional training that will ensure new career paths in the hospitality industry and empowerment to Nigerians, among others.

    The Nigerian hospitality industry, in the last couple of years, has seen a major endorsement and confidence from the world top hospitality brands as each of them is making efforts to have foothold in the country. Virtually all, with the exception of some few, currently have property they are managing in the country.

    AMCON takes over TINAPA

    When the first phase of the Tinapa Business and Leisure Resort was commissioned on April2, 2007, it was like finally Nigeria was about to emerge from the tourism wilderness into a real destination for business and leisure. But so far, the resort has lived up to the vision and hype that heralded the opening. There are so many reasons for this. They include the interference by the Nigerian Customs, bad roads and many others.

    However, respite came the way of the resort in October when the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) came to the rescue of the ailing resort by buying over the majority shares of the resort. Speaking on the acquisition, the government of Cross River State said it decided to divest so that it put the money saved in other areas of activities to solve the problem.

    By the agreement, AMCON is to buy back Tinapa’s debts totalling N18.5bn and provide N26bn for the revitalisation and resuscitation of the resort to reposition it as a private sector driven enterprise.

    The Tinapa Business and Leisure Resort was inaugurated in 2007 by President Olusegun Obasanjo with the aim of boosting the socio-economic development of not just Cross River State, but the country at large.

    However, the project taunted to be the “Dubai of Africa,” had been faced with several challenges which had hampered the achievement of its objectives.

    Over the years, the state government had explored several avenues to ensure the realization of the objectives for which Tinapa was established.

    Following the inability of the resort to meet desired expectations of the state government, core investors, especially banks and some LGAs, realized that the most viable option to salvage Tinapa was to seek a private sector equity investment and divestment of significant interest of the state in the project

  • Ministry seeks solutions to tourism challenges

    Ministry seeks solutions to tourism challenges

    The Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation may have found solutions to the challenges plaguing the creative sector, especially tourism.

    By next year, a data base account known as Tourism Satellite Account (TSN), which will enable the ministry know the contributions of tourism to economic development of the country, will be in operation.

    The ministry made this known at a two-day national tourism/expo organised by the ministry in Lagos at the weekend. It has as theme, Sustainable tourism and transformation of the Nigerian economy.

    Participants at the forum examined possible causes why tourism sector in Nigeria is lagging behind as well as finding solutions to the problems plaguing the sector.

    The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mrs Nkechi Ejele said the United Nation World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has consistently encouraged its members to produce Tourism Satellite Account (TSN) with the purpose of measuring the volumes and revenue generated by the tourism sector to their national economies. This, she said, is because the lack of comprehensive data on tourism deprives governments and businesses of credible information needed for effective public polices and business operations. She noted that it is this challenge, amongst others, that has necessitated the forum to explore, grow, develop, promote, market and generally leverage on the tourism sector to enable us achieve this desired economic development. “Beyond this, it will further sensitize investors as well as attract private partnership to the industry,” she added.

    Ejele stressed that tourism can contribute to the country’s socio-economic development because tourism is a veritable tool for economic development and social well-being of a nation. “This underscores the desire of our ministry to collaborate with stakeholders in the industry towards harnessing the abundant opportunities that exist in the sector and to ensure that tourism makes the expected contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and provide the necessary wealth to alleviate poverty and generate employment,” she said. .

    Tourism Consultant, Anitha Soni who was represented at the expo by Cross River State Bureau Managing Director, Mr Michael William said Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) “is a framework adopted by the United Nations and designed to measure goods and services associated with tourism according to international standard, concepts, classifications and definitions. The TSA provides the tourism sector with reliable data to assist them in the design of policies and strategies for tourism and to measure performance and delivery of these policies and strategies.”

    She observed that many countries including Nigeria do not have “sufficient statistic and reliable data to profile the importance of tourism, noting that the absence of supply and demand-side-information affects the ability to develop sound policy and strategic intervention and programmes.

    “This is on account of the fact that tourism sector is not measured as a sector in its own right in national account, because tourism sector is not a clearly defined industry in the international Standard Classification of all Economic Activities (ISIC), but rather an amalgamation of industries such as transportation, accommodation, food and beverage services and entertainment, travel agencies, etc,” she said.

    Former Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Ambassador Frank Nchita Ogbuewu, said that the discovery of oil in many countries of the world in recent time and our local challenges in the oil sector, point to the urgent need to diversify the nation’s economy. He said there should be emphasis on areas that are more sustainable and enduring such as tourism and agriculture.

    Ogbuewe stressed that the forum was important because to him the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan may not be complete without tourism as one of the economic sector that needs transformation.

    “Nigeria is potentially rich in tourism products, all we need is the political will to create enabling environment that must be attractive enough for both local and foreign investors. Its importance (tourism) is well captured in the theme of this expo,” he added.

  • Onasanya canvases support for tourism

    Onasanya canvases support for tourism

    The managing director of First Bank Plc., Mr. Bisi Onasanya, has said that tourism remains a veritable means of entrepreneurship and revenue earner for Nigeria, hence it should be given necessary support.

    The First Bank boss said this at the unveiling of the signage of a new resort centre, Inagbe Grand Resort and Leisure last Sunday.

    Located on Inagbe Island, the resort, a brain-child of Gran Imperio Group, occupies a land space of three million square metres and is sandwiched between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lagos Lagoon.

    Onasanya said the resort is capable of changing “the entire lifestyle of Nigerians” but also lamented that dearth of tourism projects in the country.

    “It is a shame to some of us that we have waited this long for a younger person to come and wake us up and show us what we are able to do,” said Onasanya who disclosed he had friends who had boats but don’t know where to go. Following the unveiling by Onasanya, he urged that the reesort be sustained, saying “the only way we can sustain it is to patronise it.” He also pledged to spread the word to his friends in the corporate world.

    Giving his speech, Adeyeye Ogunwusi the managing director of Gran Imperio Group, owners of the Resort, while reeling with pride, said that construction work at the resort started 90 days to reach the first phase which was unveiled.

    “And it was all put together 100% by Nigerians,” he said. “We had over 400 men working on the site day and night over the last 90 days.”

    The resort, which is sandwiched between the Lagos Lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean, when completed will have waterfalls, an 18-hole golf course, football pitches, lawn tennis courts, race tracks and swimming pools. Already, it has three jetties and 16 of the chalets have been completed. It is also ideal to hold business meetings, conferences, and retreats.

    Opened on a membership basis, the resort has four categories of memberships – platinum, gold, silver, and bronze for individual members as well as for corporate members.

    Ogunwusi, who implored everyone to believe in Nigeria, said the resort was his little way of transforming Nigeria. “And then, it (resort) provides employment for the youths because you have a lot of unemployed youths,” he said. “I believe this is how nations develop.”

    The event was witnessed by a large contingent of royal fathers from Lagos led by the host, Oba Mobadenle Oyekan, the Onilado of Ilado. Some of the royal fathers included HRM Oba Saheed Ademola Elegushi, the Elegushi of Egushiland, Oba Babatunde Adekunle Lawal, Onigbanko of Igbanko, and Aare of Ibejuland, Dapo Olufowora. Other dignitaries at the event were Hon. Babatunde Williams, the former Chairman of Yaba Local Council Development Area and musicians Weird MC and Nomoreloss.

  • Ministry seeks solutions to tourism challenges

    Ministry seeks solutions to tourism challenges

    The Federal Ministry of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation may have found solutions to the challenges plaguing the creative sector, especially tourism.

    By next year, a data base account known as Tourism Satellite Account (TSN), which will enable the ministry know the contributions of tourism to economic development of the country, will be in operation.

    This was disclosed at a two-day national tourism/expo organised by the ministry in Lagos at the weekend. It has as theme, Sustainable tourism and transformation of the Nigerian economy, in order to improve the state of tourism in Nigeria.

    Participants at the forum examined possible causes why tourism sector in Nigeria is lagging behind as well as finding solutions to the problems plaguing the sector.

    The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Mrs Nkechi Ejele said that the United Nation World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has consistently encouraged its members to produce Tourism Satellite Account (TSN) with the purpose of measuring the volumes and revenue generated by the tourism sector to their national economies. This, she said, is because the lack of comprehensive data on tourism deprives governments and businesses of credible information needed for effective public polices and business operations. She noted that it is this challenge, amongst others, that has necessitated the forum to explore, grow, develop, promote, market and generally leverage on the tourism sector to enable us achieve this desired economic development. “Beyond this, it will further sensitize investors as well as attract private partnership to the industry,” she added.

    Ejele stressed that tourism can contribute to the country’s socio-economic development because tourism is a veritable tool for economic development and social well-being of a nation. “This underscores the desire of our ministry to collaborate with stakeholders in the industry towards harnessing the abundant opportunities that exist in the sector and to ensure that tourism makes the expected contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and provide the necessary wealth to alleviate poverty and generate employment,” she said.

    Tourism Consultant, Anitha Soni, who was represented at the expo by Cross River State Bureau Managing Director, Mr Michael William said Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) “is a framework adopted by the United Nations and designed to measure goods and services associated with tourism according to international standard, concepts, classifications and definitions. The TSA provides the tourism sector with reliable data to assist them in the design of policies and strategies for tourism and to measure performance and delivery of these policies and strategies.”

    She observed that many countries, including Nigeria do not have “sufficient statistic and reliable data to profile the importance of tourism, noting that the absence of supply and demand-side-information affects the ability to develop sound policy and strategic intervention and programmes’’.

    “This is on account of the fact that tourism sector is not measured as a sector in its own right in national account, because tourism sector is not a clearly defined industry in the international Standard Classification of all Economic Activities (ISIC), but rather an amalgamation of industries such as transportation, accommodation, food and beverage services and entertainment, travel agencies, etc,” she said.

    Former Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Ambassador Frank Nchita Ogbuewu, said the discovery of oil in many countries in recent time and our local challenges in the oil sector, point to the urgent need to diversify the nation’s economy. He said there should be emphasis on areas that are more sustainable and enduring such as tourism and agriculture.

    He stressed that the forum was important because to him the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan may not be complete without tourism as one of the economic sector that needs transformation. “Nigeria is potentially rich in tourism products, all we need is the political will to create enabling environment that must be attractive enough for both local and foreign investors. Its importance (tourism) is well captured in the theme of this expo,” he added.

  • How we are transforming tourism in Delta, by RMD

    How we are transforming tourism in Delta, by RMD

    What has been your major focus since you assumed office, sir?

    My major focus apart from performing my statutory roles has been in the area of partnership, trying to bring in as many private investors into the business because prior to now the development of tourism in Delta State has mainly been a government priority and its dwindling funds and all that, it became imperative that even from trying to propagate culture and all that, we cannot depend on government. Because of my background in the private sector, my first desire was to try and make sure that every programme I had to do here had private sector participation. In the process of doing all of that, we expanded it and found what we were looking for. It started small with small enquiry and it later blossomed into a full-fledged relationship, which has resulted in our present partnership; so, that has been our major focus and because of the intention for job creation, it becomes even more imperative to keep looking for more investors. As I speak to you now, we are looking at concessioning the entire Convention Centre with a view to not just improving the facilities because to improve the facility is one thing, to now get people to use the facility is another. I had the privilege of visiting South Africa recently; in the process of attending an exhibition, I found out the space was so well utilized. We posed the question if the investors would be interested and they were interested and to my greatest surprise, about two weeks after my trip, they sent people here. They came through Benin and today we are talking and they are going to be here for another one month. They are going to be here with more of their people to take actual measurement of the entire grounds. In fact, I am hoping that over time they would keep expanding; in fact, they actually wanted to partner us in building a cultural centre. You know we own a land that is next to the Cenotaph and one of the things that I wanted to pursue during my tenure is to have a space that integrates every arm of culture and tourism -a land where tourism board would be, the art council would be, the administrative offices would be, a place where the cultural centre would also be for performances and have a shopping complex just like what you have in the museum in Lagos , the one near City Hall , a lively space. So, I wanted our gyms to have that place not just the office of the tourism ministry but to be the real focal point of activities in Asaba, a place that never goes to bed; that’s the idea. Even if we don’t achieve that, maybe the coming administration will achieve that. So, that has been the main aim of getting the investors here because with the investors money, we can do a whole lot more than the government can commission.

    How difficult has this been?

    It’s been very difficult because the nature of tourism itself depends on the functionality of every other arm of government; so, it is only when there is complete oiling of the system; when education is working, when infrastructure is working, when health is working, when works is working, when housing and environment and when all other things are working. All of these elements have to keep coming together. So, for most times you wait apart from the direct development of the areas that nature has endowed you with or some of the very special things that we have been able to create like the Lander Brothers Anchorage,decoration or ornamentation of city roundabouts and museums and all of that for the other parts; we actually depend on how government is functioning. So, it is difficult because fund is a challenge and over and above everything else, security has been in the front burner of this country now in the last ten or so years in different areas. If it is not Boko Haram, it is agitation for the control of the oil well, piracy, militancy and so on. Nigeria has constantly grown since 9/11. We have been growing by the time the Xmas Bomber Nigerian boy was seen or caught with a device that could not detonate. Our tourism alert level rose to be at the same level with Pakistan. So, travel advisory is not in our favour in any way. I will give you an example; when we started discussions with Scarner Pfm, the first time that their expatriates came, the Asaba airport was not working then. I received them in Benin. I had to go to the army headquarters in Warri and the governor gave me clearance. So, I took some soldiers. I had police men just to be able to bring five of them to Warri. It was the demand of our visitors. The travel advisory was that they should not come. The luck I had was that I had a set of stubborn people that were also rugged; they wanted the sense of adventure. After we shipped them to Warri, we went around and they spent about eight days and they left. When they got back, one of them sent me the travel advisory that came when he had left that he should not near Nigeria that if he must come apart from Abuja and Lagos, he is not safe but he was now laughing and saying to them ‘thank you very much but I have gone and come back’. It is not all of them that would take that risk. I will give you an example of what you suffer with security. The people who were supposed to build Warri Convention Centre; one of the times they came was when there was bombing in Warri during the Vanguard Lectures. We know that it is not a Delta thing, it is a national problem but when security is threatened anywhere, the first thing that suffers is movement, not just movement of foreigners to your country but internal movement. I do not know how you would love a posting to Borno State.Each time you are talking about Nigeria and tourism, I know what we suffer. The opposition you get is how will this work? You throw it back at their faces because you are talking with investors in South Africa and they are telling me how unsafe Nigeria is and I am telling them everybody that comes to your country is robbed between the airport and his hotel. The question arises: is South Africa safer than Nigeria? That is the kind of argument you are constantly faced with. You give examples of Israel, Egypt and the Middle East that is dependent on tourism and that has not stopped tourists going to those places but once it is a developing country, everybody wants to make a mountain out of a mole hill. So, these are the challenges, they are such that once there is any major thing in or in your state, it tends to affect anything that has to do with tourism. But the comfort is that we have also come to a point where it is clear to everybody that we cannot keep relying on oil. There is a dire need to diversify; that is why the Delta State beyond Oil initiative should be commended. The major challenges have been funding and security issues.

    Despite your efforts and its cultural and natural endowments, it would appear Delta State has been unable to project itself as the preferred tourist destination in the country.

    I do not agree with you in the sense you have posed the question. For one, that of Cross River State, it is a deliberate state policy to pursue a state without oil that had started during the regime of ex-Governor Donald Duke. So, all policies are geared towards that area. What we have done here in the last six years is to redirect the efforts of government into diversification and so it is aimed purely at tourism alone. But in spite of not having done that in the sense of Cross River State, you will still find we are indeed a destination of choice in the area of conferencing in Asaba because there is relative peace and conducive environment. If you talk about an environment that has been enabled, Asaba has been enabled that is why people draw comparism. When you leave Edo State and enter Delta State, you will see a remarkable difference in terms of the layout of the town and when you cross into Onitsha, you see a remarkable difference. So, it is like an oasis smack in the middle of the desert. It just keeps drawing people to it and with the establishment of the airport, it has become a hub. Maybe we have not projected it in that sense like the Cross Rivers has done. I agree with you that perception is reality. But we are beginning to break that perception gradually. It is not something the Culture Ministry can achieve as an arm of government but the entire government in terms of policies. Delta beyond Oil has just become the present focus; we have graduated beyond our 3-Point Agenda naturally into the Delta beyond Oil, which is a bigger platform. It will come to fruition; we are incubating the Oleri Water Park , Ogwashi-Uku Wildlife Park. When they are functional, we will get to that point where we want to get to. The important thing is, are we laying certain foundation? Yes, we are. In the fullness of time, we will see come to public light.

    How significant is the Supreme Court judgment in the case between Lagos State and the Nigeria Tourism and Development Commission (NTDC)? How will it impact on revenues accruable to Delta?

    First and foremost, we do not get a lot of receipts in terms of collection from hotel registration from this part of the country because of our population. Sometimes when people compare Lagos and Delta, it is an unfair comparison, you are comparing 18 million people in a city that has been developed many decades unlike Delta State created 22 years ago. Having said that, what that judgment does is that every of our receipt is retained, boosting our IGR and being a conferencing centre, more hotels are being planned. In answering your question, part of what I did not mention is that before now we have been growing hospitality business at a small level but we have reached out to the bigger brands and so the branded hotels are coming; Hilton with development at very advanced stage, Best Western Deluxe are coming, there is a Protea in Warri but Protea is coming to Asaba. We are in discussion with some brands that I am not at liberty to divulge; so, all of those are part of it. When all of that comes in, whatever collection we make will be for us as a state as opposed to the time when 50 per cent goes to the Federal Government.

    How do you respond to critics who say the Oleri Leisure Resort may not get the required patronage and as such will not be a commercial success?

    People are entitled to their opinions; criticisms are welcome. The reason I am optimistic is that we have done our research, the investors have done their research, and the demographics are there. It is like saying will Shoprite work in Asaba? Before now, the first show I was going to do in Asaba –the first made-in-Warri show, we were very scared because you can stand in the middle of Ogboegonogo market, and you look right and left and the entire Asaba is before you. I feared where the people who will attend the show will come from. With pounding hearts, we went ahead and did the publicity and the show was to start at 7.00pm.I remember I took Ali Baba, Basket Mouth and the others to pay a courtesy call on the Deputy Governor. We were at the Deputy Governor’s place at 4.00pm, but I got a call that we must come right because the hall was too full. I could not believe it because the entire venue was jam-packed. That was how we started doing concerts in Asaba and today everyone wants to do shows in Asaba. There is a tendency for people to look at everything that has to do with government as being grandiose. What is the essence of a tourist attraction if it is not in its grandest form. A leisure resort in the Niger Delta with people with highly disposable income that is bordered by Bayelsa, Rivers, Edo even Lagos states, I do not see how anyone will doubt that people will come. A family of five can go with N1000. The way the investors have calibrated the entire project at its worst receipt of 25 per cent patronage, they will still be in business. Do you know how long it took Disney Europe to break even? It took it 10 years. And guess where the receipts came from? Nigeria. People will come if the attractions are there. People confuse the facts, it is not government money. That is why they label it grandiose. How can tourism be anything less than grandiose? How can you build anything that will not take your breath away? Which is what is about to happen at Oleri Leisure Resort. People are even saying will it be ready before 2015, but why should the project all be ready be 2015,it is not a project that is tied to the lifespan of the Uduaghan administration. It is a private sector project with government’s role clearly defined. If critics know what it takes to develop a theme park, they will know it is too late to pull out because too much has been committed to it already by the investors.

    How did you manage to pull this project through, because it is truly grand. What did you tell investors despite the advisory reports on security situations in the country?

    Nigeria has the numbers. You will use the success of MTN to prove to them that Nigeria is the place to do business despite the crime rate, poor infrastructure and all the other negatives but today we are responsible for 20 per cent of their entire income worldwide. Once we got Governor Uduaghan’s backing, the rest was easy.

     

  • ‘Tourism ‘ll bring 400,000 jobs’

    The Minister for Culture and Tourism, Edem Duke, has said Federal Government’s proposed intervention in the tourism sector will lead to reduced unemployment rate.

    The minister said the sector, if well harnessed, would create over 400,000 jobs for the Nigerians.

    Duke also said the security challenges confronting the nation should not be seen as a threat to investments in the sector.

    The minister noted that security challenges were global matters which were not peculiar to the Nigeria.

    He said: “Security is no excuse for tourism not to grow in Nigeria. Security challenges are all over the world. Nigeria is not the only country being challenged with security issues.”

    Duke said the Federal Government was committed to rebuilding the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), develop the right skills, improve facilities and carry out advocacy efforts.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • ‘Bayelsa’ll be a tourism destination’

    ‘Bayelsa’ll be a tourism destination’

    The Bayelsa State Governor, Henry Sieriake Dickson, has said his administration fashion out a policy to make the state a tourism destination through the Bayelsa State Tourism Development Agency.

    The Governor, who spoke at the 36th World Tourism Day (WTD) celebrations last Friday, at the Ox-Bow Lake, Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, disclosed his administration’s readiness to explore the tourism option for economic growth, having realised that the sector had been dormant in the state.

    He noted that his administration has been building and developing tourist centres, which have started attracting a lot of people to the state.

    On this year’s WTD theme, Tourism and water: protecting our common future, Governor Dickson, who was represented by his deputy, Rear Admiral Gboribiogha John Jonah (rtd), noted that the theme was geared towards creating the awareness on the need for sustainable clear water, its accessibility in the present and in the future for all mankind, because water is an essential component of humanity.

    He added that his administration had initiated talks on partnership with the Federal Government and the private sector to see how to provide potable water to all residents in the state and that the talks has been yielding positive results.

    Earlier, Governor Dickson noted that Bayelsa, has among others things, a thriving petroleum sector, a large fishing industry, a developing tourism sector, and a growing private sector, adding that the state had beautiful beaches, mangrove forests, rivers, creeks and islands; therefore, it is building on these natural resources advantages to take its pride of place among the economic stories of Nigeria.

    He explained that his administration has built an Institute of Tourism, Catering and Hotel Management to train professionals that will help in driving the tourism sector in the state and that the institute would be inaugurated soon.

    Minister for Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Chief Edem Duke, in his remark, appreciated the Governor for hosting WTD and building the Institute of Hospitality and Tourism in the state, noting that the event is aimed at fostering awareness in the international community on tourism’s social, cultural and economic values in the affairs of nations, adding that water is part of life and tourism itself is life, contributing significantly to the world’s economy and that billions of people travel around the world for the sake of tourism.

    The Minister further commended the State for her pace-setting role as a forerunner in the promotion of culture and tourism in Nigeria, recalling that Bayelsa State just hosted a grade “A” National Festival of Arts & Culture (NAFEST), which had raised the stakes in the hosting of the national cultural fiesta, tagged, “the unity forum.”

    He acknowledged that the state is endowed with many tourism potentials, maintaining that the collaboration between his ministry and the state is very robust, and urged the state to keep the pace of its strategic approach in developing the tourism sector.

    It would be recalled that the United Nations (UN) has set aside the 27th of September every year for member countries to mark the World Tourism Day celebration; and the first of such celebration was marked in 1980, following the Manila Declaration on World Tourism.

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  • High Commission hosts medical tourism, wellness expo

    High Commission hosts medical tourism, wellness expo

    As part of efforts to provide excellent service delivery in the healthcare sector, the Indian High Commission in Nigeria in conjunction with the Indian Ministry of Tourism and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry organised the medical tourism and wellness destination in Lagos recently.

    The inaugural address was given by the His Excellency Mr. Mahesh Sachdev, Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria.

    While lauding the efforts of the commission for the initiative in bringing together concerned stakeholders to discuss opportunities for bilateral synergy in the sector, he hinted that nearly 30 of India’s largest and best regarded healthcare providers are participating in the event.

    Mr. Sachdev said the importance of health to a society cannot be under estimated because healthy citizenry augur well for a country in terms of societal happiness, longevity and higher productivity.

    The Commissioner of Health Lagos State Dr. Jide Idris, was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Funmilayo Olatunji.

    She said Lagos State has been doing a lot in the health care delivery system, and that collaboration with the Indians in the area of capacity building, training and infrastructural building was a welcome development.

    She said the public private partnership (PPP) also plays a major role in the health sector, adding that Lagos State is looking at ways to partner other countries and also create opportunities in sending some doctors on course to understudy so as to develop the state’s health care system.