April 5, 2018

The Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria (FTAN) says it is collaborating with Nigerian Tourism Development Coorporation (NTDC), National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and others to boost the sector.

The National President of FTAN, Malam Rabo Saleh, made this know when he addressed newsmen in Abuja on Thursday.

Saleh said that with his appointment as NTDC board member, he would ensure positive and effective collaborations to move tourism forward.

“It is a good step because government cannot run the tourism sector alone; there is absolute need for the private sector to be carried along.

“We are going to do everything possible to ensure that tourism is given priority and placed in a right position to attract tourists from across the world.

“For example, we have a lot of tourism sites in the Federal Capital Territory. There is need to open them up by providing good infrastructure and facilities for convenience to make them habitable.

“Consequently, it will also benefit the local people through the provision of employment for members of the community,” Saleh said.

He further said that the collaborations with stakeholders would ensure advocacy visits to various communities around tourist sites in the country to educate them on the benefits they stand to gain when they cooperate.

He said that the involvement of local communities in ensuring the smooth operations of tourist sites was important, adding that tourists were only interested in traditional setting in rural areas not sky-scrapers and modern structures.

Saleh explained further that due to the importance of data in management of tourism, the NBS would in no distant time begin the training of its (FTAN) staff on collation and management of data in tourism industry.

He said plans have reached advance stage that would culminate in signing of Memorandum of Understanding for the data collation and management training.

“This is good for the development of the sector and information for prospective investors in the sector; when information about the sector is handy, investor will be interested.”

On double taxation imposed on operators in the hospitality and travel industry, Saleh said the meeting between FTAN and revenue authorities was ongoing.

Saleh also said FTAN was working hard to ensure that the forthcoming Tourism Investment Forum impact the sector, stakeholders and country in general.

He, however, said the security challenge in the country was not encouraging the growth of tourism, adding that FTAN was doing its best in the sector to ensure the gains trickled down to the people at the grassroots.

“Security had been a serious challenge; when we thought we were getting over the Chibok issue, Dapchi happened; but we thank God for the immediate and prompt response of the Federal Government.

“Also, President Muhammadu Buhari, has just signed the release of one billion dollars to address security challenges. I believe this will go a long way to address security challenges and encourage tourism.

“I believe in a matter of time, insecurity will be a thing of the past.

“We also intend to be in attendance at the meeting of Presidential Council of Tourism to table ideas and strategies that will develop and boost the sector,” Saleh said.