Tourism minister, Mrs Lola Ade John, Thursday in Abuja promised to collaborate with members of Nigeria Association of Tour Operators, NATOP, in their efforts to promote Nigeria’s tourism sites, landmarks and cultural heritage.
The minister who received the President of NATOP, Mrs Bolaji Mustapha, and her executive members, expressed her excitement at the intention of the Nigerian tour trade practitioners to tour the country’s vast landscape, process, under-study, package and promote various tourism offerings Nigeria has for the world and the people of Nigeria.
“We shall partner, and I assure you of my ministry’s support and encouragement. Going forward, we shall endeavour to invite and carry your association along in whatever we are going to do. We need you to furnish us with a list of your accredited members and when we are going to present the tourism policy, which we think we need to review, we shall invite NATOP to look at it and further add value to the document,” she said.
On fund support to NATOP activities and facilitating efforts to showcase Nigeria at the World Travel Market, WTM, the minister said the ministry is working around tourism budget which currently cannot help drive the many pending tourism projects of the ministry and indeed, may impact on the ministry’s participation at the global tourism trade event this year in London. But she assured that at the budgetry release next year, Nigeria will take giant steps to showcase her tourism offerings to the world.
“We are constrained financially for now and can’t do much, but hopefully by next year budget, we should have done our home work well and I assure you that we are going to do many tourism projects together because what you did during the World Tourism Day in Lagos was the way to go in promoting Nigeria which is very dear to my heart,” the minister said.
NATOP President, who visited the minister in company of her deputy, Ms. Geraldine Itoe; the National Publicity Secretary, Onyeka John; Financial Secretary, Ms. Ogugua Anobili; and Deputy National Secretary, Joy Alexander Oziegbe, had earlier briefed the minister on the association’s short and long-term plans to market Nigeria’s rich tourism assets and also of their intention to participate at the World Travel Market.
“We’re here to assure you and the ministry of our partnership and collaboration to market Nigeria’s diverse offerings cutting across cultural heritage, ecological tourism, hospitality, festivals and fashion. We are interested in sharing our knowledge concerning Nigerian tourism policy and other industry related concerns, which would help reposition our tourism within the domestic and international space,” NATOP President said, promising that the association will reinvent the strategic socio-economic importance of tourism economy to job creation and empowerment of the people, with eyes on improved global ranking as a destination to visit in Africa.
“We have started looking inwards, and in weeks and months to come, NATOP will embark on a project to rediscover Nigeria, and with it, galvanize the states, local authorities and the Nigerian people to think Nigeria culture and tourism first. Nigeria tourism is important to us, and we want to have your ministry’s backing in this noble effort,” NATOP President said.
