The Director-General, Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), Mr. Folorunsho Coker has stressed the need for stakeholders in the tourism industry to collaborate in order to drive the growth of the sector.
Coker said this at the opening of the South-south Tourism Stakeholders’ Forum in Calabar, last week.
The meeting organised by Coker with stakeholders from Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo and Rivers States, held in Calabar.
It was meant to brainstorm on the way forward in the sector amid COVID-19 and security challenges
The theme of the forum was: “Use of Digital Technology to Revamp the Tourism and Hospitality Industry Amid Covid-19 and Security Challenges in Nigeria.”
Coker said the time had come for actors in the tourism and hospitality industry to stop competing with one another and embrace collaboration to move the industry forward.
“This is the season of collaboration not the season of competition. In this season of technological advancement, stakeholders should collaborate rather than compete,” he said. He further said the sector was the worst hit since the advent of the coronavirus, noting, “the Bureau of Statistics reported that Nigeria recorded a trade deficit of N7.38 trillion in year 2020. The highest we have recorded since 1981.”
According to him, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a unique opportunity for advancement by accelerating the deployment of disruptive technologies to make work and living easier.
He said, “the development of digital tools and smart apps are already transforming the tourism value chain. Popular tech apps like Uber, AirBnB, Bolt, Aura, Hotels.ng and Instagram’s digital tourism pages are changing old narratives and creating new user-friendly experiences for intending travelers and tourists.”
He observed that there was a disconnect in the tourism policies between the federal, states and local governments in terms of participation in tourism development.
He attributed the gap to tourism laws, and stressed the need for a new legal framework for the sector.
“Tourism begins at the local government, so, we need active participation of the local governments for tourism to thrive, “ he said.
He urged tourism stakeholders to embark on regular training of their staff in view of the new trend in the industry occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic.
Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, Dr. Adoara Ayanwutaku, said the forum was timely in view of the damage done to the tourism sector by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ayanwutaku, who was represented by Deputy Director, Domestic and Eco-Tourism, Promotion and Control, Mrs. Sani Sodangi, said the forum would provide opportunity to stakeholders to make postulations on the way forward.
According to her, the theme was apt.
She pledged the ministry’s readiness to provide the enabling environment for all agencies, “to perform optimally.”
In his keynote address, the Commissioner for Tourism and Culture in Cross River State Mr. Eric Anderson, said in spite of the setback brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, the tourism industry in Nigeria was still vibrant.
