Nigeria: Hoteliers Seek Govt Bailout Fund for Tourism Sector

Secretary of Nigeria Hoteliers Association, Kaduna branch, Mr Jijiwon Akpovwovwo, has appealed to the Federal Government to provide a bailout fund for development of the tourism sector.

Akpovwovwo made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna.

He said tourism contributed about 10 per cent of the National Gross Domestic Product and provided employment to Nigerian youths.

Akpovwovwo said tourism was the "fastest developing industry in the world" and as such Nigeria should support its development to tap maximally from the sector. He also urged the government to grant two years tax exemption for new hotels to encourage more investment.

The secretary cited the cases of countries like Gambia, South Africa and Ghana, where such waivers were granted.

Sustainable Tourism: Key to Poverty Reduction and Environmental Protection

Essentially, sustainable tourism has over the years proved to be a major driver of most developed and emerging economies. Countries like the Republic of Kenya and Seychelles in Africa like their counterparts in the developed countries rely on tourism as their major source of revenue. This among other accruing benefits such as poverty reduction and environmental protection has necessitated the clamor to create the necessary atmosphere that can support sustainable tourism worldwide.  At the United Nations General Assembly recently, a consensus milestone resolution was adopted emphasizing the need to optimize the economic, social, cultural and environmental benefits stemming from sustainable tourism, particularly in developing countries. The resolution was entitled“Promotion of sustainable tourism, including ecotourism, for poverty eradication and environment protection”.
It is significantly broader in scope than the previous ones on the subject, builds on a 2012 UN resolution on ecotourism and draws on a report prepared by United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). In line with its recommendations, it underlines the importance of appropriate national policies, guidelines and regulations for promoting sustainable tourism, including ecotourism, and encourages United Nations member States, regional and international financial institutions to support sustainable tourism projects. They should also enable the creation of small and medium-sized enterprises, promoting cooperatives and facilitating access to inclusive financial services, including micro-credit initiatives for the poor, local and indigenous communities.
The resolution was adopted by consensus and sponsored by an impressive total number of 107 Member States, including Morocco, which, as on previous occasions, was the lead sponsor and in that capacity had steered the whole negotiating process to a successful conclusion. The Secretary-General of UNWTO, Taleb Rifai said that UNWTO welcomed the remarkable acknowledgement of tourism’s ability to advance sustainable development across the world. He also noted that the wide-ranging support to the resolution mirrors the increasing awareness of the vital role that tourism plays in a sustainable future for all and opens the doors for its supportive national policies and international financing.
The resolution places sustainable tourism firmly on the UN post-2015 agenda as it requests UNWTO and other United Nations agencies to develop recommendations on ways and means to promote sustainable tourism, including ecotourism, as a tool for fighting poverty and promoting sustainable development to be submitted to the seventy-first session of the UN General Assembly in 2016.

 By chika nwakwo

Nigerian Tourism Master Plan: Reactions Trail Implementation

However, six years on events in sector has left much to be desired in terms of the manner and pace of its implementation.  As a result, stakeholders in the industry who spoke with LEADERSHIP shared their views on the state of affairs regarding the plan. The president of the Hospitality and Tourism Management Association of Nigeria (HATMAN), Mallam Aliyu Badaki Ajayi, said the findings in the tourism master plan document revealed that both the ministry and Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) lack professional personnel. He suggested that competent professionals, including relevant stakeholders, should be involved and enjoined the federal government to show more commitment towards its implementation.

Ajayi was worried over the absence of any intervention scheme for tourism and hospitality development, adding that integrated statistical information aimed at measuring the economic aspects of tourism was not readily available. In his contribution, the president of the International Council of African Museums (AFRICOM), Mr Nath Mayo Adediran, described the tourism master plan as an orphan, saying that the inability to implement the plan was due to lack of competent human resources. Adediran, who is the chief executive officer of RAA Heritage Global Resources Ltd, admitted that there was scanty strategy, capacity and capabilities within the leadership of the sector, stressing that the sector also lacked adequate finances and sponsorship from corporate bodies to market their products.

On his part, the national president of the Institute for Tourism Professionals (ITP), Chief Abiodun Odunsanwo, called on the federal government to involve the private sectors in the industry, noting that tourism was designed to be driven by the private sector since they played key roles. He added that the tourism master plan was a very good document at that time but some of its content had become redundant.

By chika nwakwo

NIGERIA POISED TO EXPLORE KENYA'S CULTURAL TOURISM

 Cross River State of Nigeria is keen on learning on Kenya’s cultural tourism product that has become prominent and pulling factor into tourists to the country besides beach and wildlife safari.

The Director of Culture in Calabar, the Cross River State capital city Dr. Mary Teresa Agba said the State has a lot to learn from Kenya as the City seeks to brand itself as a cultural destination.

“Besides the wildlife and beach safari that we have known Kenya for, we are keen on learning on how to develop and repackage culture as a product as well as embracing sustainable tourism through handicraft business,” says Agba.

She said empowering the communities through handicrafts was one way of ensuring sustainability as well as embracing of Eco tourism practices that is becoming popular in current tourism.

“We are aware of Kenya’s zeal towards Eco tourism by giving communities priorities in areas such as handicrafts, community-made wares among other opportunities that have direct impact on local communities where tourism is being carried out.

Calabar city is a tourism hub for a Nigeria attracting slightly over 0.5 million tourists a year through the famous Calabar festivals that usually takes place between November and December.

The festival showcases cultures such as marriage , cuisine, costumes, dances, oral literature among others.

The city has shown keen interest on borrowing a leaf from Kenya’s cultural activities in the villages within the tourism attraction areas as well as the annual cultural events such as lake Turkana cultural festivals, Maralal international camel derby and Lamu cultural festivals among others .

The call for benchmarking comes during Kenya’s launch of training for over 200 travel trade in the Western countries of Ghana and Nigeria that have shown the potential to the growth of Kenya tourism .

Last year, both counties contributed to 23,000 tourists to Kenya which KTB says can shoot up remarkably with increased marketing activities .
National carrier , Kenya airways is set to launch a direct flight from Abuja to Nairobi , a move that is poised to increase the number of tourists to Kenya.

By Joseph Kobla Wemakor

EGYPT REPORTED 4.4% INCREASE IN TOURIST ARRIVALS

Egypt ended last year with a positive balance and therefore expects "the Land of the Pharaohs" to become once again one of the most visited places in the world by the end of 2015.

"If we continue on the path we have started we will return to normality in the sector by the end of the year," declared the chairman of the Egyptian Tourism Authority, Samy Mahmoud, at a press conference.

According to Mahmud, there was a 4.4 % increase in tourist arrivals, which means that nearly 10 million people visited the country last year. In Egypt where tourism accounts for 11.3 % of Gross Domestic Product, restoring tourist confidence is crucial after the decline experienced by the sector following the 2011 revolution that ended with the overthrow of the Hosni Mubarak regime.

The official stressed that Egypt is a safe country where tourists can have a good time with no need to worry. "The Egyptian Government cares about each tourist visiting the country," he stated. "Currently we have high security systems with cameras and police officers who control all the tourist areas, so there is no need to worry," he explained.

Although he acknowledged that they are indeed facing "some problems" in Cairo, the tourism chief said that the jihadi terrorist attacks in France have shown that nowhere in the world is absolutely safe. The Cairo Airport reinforced its security measures after finding two explosive devices in airport terminals last week. No one was arrested.

"There is great improvement in the situation at the borders. We have security challenges, we have economic challenges but we have the will of the Egyptian people and the Egyptian leadership in moving forward," he explained.

"The situation is much better than it looks," he repeated, and to prove it, although he admitted they are still working towards the recovery of cultural tourism, today hotels in the coastal area – Egypt’s sun and beach tourism – are reporting 80% occupancy.

Mahmud also announced that five direct flights from China will start operating under an agreement that will result in 700,000 more visits annually for Egypt’s tourism recovery. This agreement is in addition to the one signed with Spanish operators who, as of March 21 this year, will resume direct flights from Madrid to Aswan, as well as Nile cruises. 

    Cum from: tourism review                                                                  

EBOLA OR GORILLAS?

   The concerted international response to the epidemic, now more than 12 months old, has also reassured potential visitors who once worried that the Ebola fight was being left solely to a handful of NGOs and three deeply impoverished governments.

   The United States deployed more than 2,000 marines to Liberia from September to help build treatment units, while Britain sent 800 troops to Sierra Leone, a former colony.

After criticism of its ponderous initial response to the outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) also boosted its support of governments and aid agencies, deploying hundreds of officials for 'contact tracing' of possible victims.

"There is comfort in knowing that there are a lot of international hands on the ground and it's not just governments with few resources tackling it themselves," said Dianna Games of the South Africa-Nigeria Chamber of Commerce.

In South Africa, where tourism accounts for nearly 10 percent of GDP, industry officials cited Ebola as one of the reasons for a slightly below-forecast Christmas season but said its potential eradication augured well for 2015.

   Elsewhere, hoteliers in remote locations said visitors prepared to deal with discomforts ranging from malaria to political instability were always bound eventually to arrive at a more sober-sided assessment of the risks of Ebola.

"If you look at my bookings diary for November and December, it's just full of crossings out where we've had cancellations," said Aubrey Price, owner of the luxury Ndali Lodge in western Uganda's Ruwenzori Mountains.

"But the cancellations are now drying up and the bookings are coming in so I'm actually pretty optimistic about 2015. It seems people have got used to the threat of Ebola and they just want to come and see gorillas."

As Ebola fear Eases, African Tourism Edges Back

From the jungle-clad slopes of the Great Lakes to the game parks of South Africa, tourism is beginning to recover as the Ebola outbreak in a corner of the continent ebbs and foreigners overcome their fear of the virus.

The epidemic has been confined overwhelmingly to Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, but it has resonated all across the continent in the form of cancelled flights, missed meetings and empty hotel rooms, even though Africa's main tourist areas are further from the Ebola zone than Paris.

Inquiries at Safaribookings, a marketplace for more than 1,200 safari companies in east and southern Africa, were down 25 percent during the last four months of 2014, but bounced back in January, with a 20 percent rise compared to a year ago.

"It's really increased incredibly over the last three weeks," said Jan Beekwilder, the company's co-owner. "The surplus is really due to the ending of the crisis."

Several individual lodge operators also said business improved since experts started talking about the beginning of the end of the epidemic.

A scaling back of the wall-to-wall media coverage of the handful of Ebola cases that occurred in Europe and the United States - where most tourists to Africa come from - has helped.

"Things are better," Hotels Association of Tanzania head Lathifa Sykes said, while echoing the frustrations of many Africans who say Westerners often forget that Africa is three times the size of the United States and made up of 54 countries.

Beyond Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, Ebola reached only three other countries, all in West Africa. Eight people died in Nigeria, six in Mali and none in Senegal, where just one case was diagnosed. The outbreak has been declared over in all three.

"The world needs to understand that Africa is not a country. God forbid anything else should happen – Ebola coming back or anything else – but we need to educate our tourists," she said.

In the three worst-hit countries - none of them destinations for all but the hardiest back-packer or bush-whacker - the situation remains bleak, with flight restrictions still in place and foreign firms refusing to let expatriate workers back.

But elsewhere in the immediate area, business and leisure travel is recovering, if slowly.

Several managers of beach hotels along Ghana's coast reported a gradual recovery in bookings after a drop of at least 20 percent last year, but they feared it would take time before the stigma caused by the publicity surrounding Ebola disappears.

"The media have terrified people about coming to West Africa and it's been so detrimental," said Wendy Pongo, founder of Big Milly's Backyard, a beach hotel outside the Ghanaian capital Accra famous for its Saturday night reggae.