By Taiye Olayemi

The National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) says its 47th Annual General Meeting (AGM) will focus on enlightening members on travel trade promotion.

Mrs Susan Akporiaye, NANTA’s National President, disclosed this during a news conference on Wednesday in Lagos.

Akporiaye said the AGM which would hold from April 25 to April 27, would be a non-elective one, and had been deliberately planned for members to learn how to approach their businesses as well as promote it.

She said the travel trade industry was confronted with series of challenges ranging from trapped funds, monopoly of the market, unfair practices, border and visa issues.

According to her, the AGM will have the NANTA members engage on how to navigate through the challenges to be able to break even in business.

“We are here to inform you about our 47th AGM in Abuja, April 25th to 27th 2023, and as usual, we will use the opportunity to learn from experts about areas of our business that must be addressed and improved upon.

“The theme for the AGM is “Professionalism: A Key To Surviving Aviation Downstream Turbulences And Its Exploitative Effects”.

“No doubt, the travel world is incredibly interesting but there are also areas of concern; such as trapped funds, monopoly, unfair practices, border and visa issues and whole lot of emerging complexities.

“Mr Babatunde Irukera, Executive Vice Chairman of Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) will be speaking to us, not only on how we can confidently protect our businesses and clients.

“He will also enlighten us on how to navigate challenges of foreign airlines trapped funds and its impacts on our businesses,” she said.

Edited by Folasade Adeniran

By Taiye Olayemi

The National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) has partnered the Tour Operators Union of Ghana (TOUGHA) to improve inter-Africa travels.

Mrs Susan Akporiaye, President of NANTA, during a media briefing in Lagos on Wednesday, said to actualise the plan, the two bodies would be hosting an international travel and tourism conference in Johannesburg, South Africa.

She said the conference slated to hold from May 4 to May 7, was also to promote Africa as a destination for tourism and unite the continent.

According to her, the conference will bring together industry players across African countries to market their tourism products as well as brain storm on how to ensure seamless travels across the continent.

“We are glad to inform you that for the first time in Africa, two industry associations, NANTA and TOUGHA, endorsed by South Africa Tourism (SAT), will be hosting a hybrid multi layer tourism industry conference in Johannesburg.

“This conference is birthed out of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agenda.

“NANTA and TOUGHA would assemble the best faculty from the University of Johannesburg on tourism enterprise and related businesses.

“This is to help define and determine the immediate and future drive of the industry, its profitability and challenges.

“We would have two panel sessions, one day workshop that will involve government and private sector participation, exhibitions and lots more,” she said.

Akporiaye noted that the conference was also an attempt to quell South Africa Xenophobia tendencies and encourage brotherliness with citizens from all African countries.

She explained that going forward, NANTA would allow a country to host the conference for minimum of 2 years consecutively before moving to another country.

“At this point, we need to drop the borders, we do not need the borders in Africa for travel businesses to flourish.

“Already, we have people from Cameroon, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe indicating interest to attend.

“At the end of this all, we pray we are able to get positive resolve on cumbersome visa procurement processes and other challenges.

“We must appreciate and commend the management of South Africa Tourism (SAT).

“Particularly their teams in Nigeria and Ghana for the special interest in our growth through knowledge based exposures and assistance to our clients wishing to visit, trade, and immerse in South African hospitality and culture,” she said.

Also speaking, Mr Yinka Folami, Vice President of NANTA, Lagos office, said the conference which would be certificated, was open to individuals, organisations, and agencies in Nigeria and Ghana.

Folami noted that it would be opened particularly to those with the interest of impacting positively on the growth and sustainability of the various value chains in the African cultural tourism economy. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chidinma Agu/Vivian Ihechu

By Taiye Olayemi

National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), a parastatal of the Federal Government, is to hold a gastronomy festival on June 16 and 17, 2023, to market African cuisines.

Alhaji Nura Kangiwa, Director-General, NIHOTOUR, disclosed this in a statement on Monday, in Lagos, through his Special Assistant, Mr Joesef Karim.

Kangiwa said the 2023 edition of the festival was the third consecutive food and beverage exhibition and sampling event annually organised by NIHOTOUR since 2021.

The theme for the festival will be “Culinary Arts: The Gate Way to Growing Tourism Destinations”.

“NIHOTOUR’s gastronomy festival is positioned to be one of the largest and most culturally eclectic culinary arts and related gastronomy event in Africa.

“The event will attract over 5,000 visitors and industry stakeholders who will participate in the experiential learning of food production processes and indulge in free sampling of diverse Nigerian and international cuisines and beverages on display.

“The festival will be laced with traditional gaiety and entertainments that highlight Nigeria’s rich cultural diversity, including musicals and dance choreography.

“This will hold at Abuja International Conference Centre, on the 16th and 17th of June 2023,” he said.

According to him, NIHOTOUR was established by an Act of Parliament to train, certify and register personnel in Nigeria’s hospitality, travel and tourism sectors.

He explained that the gastronomy festival was conceptualised to upskill Nigerian gastronomes on nitty-gritties of the preparation and presentation of foods, especially Nigerian traditional cuisines.

He said the objective was to improve the expertise of personnel in the industry.

“Due to the dearth of skilled culinary artistes in Nigeria, NIHOTOUR’s gastronomy festival provides one of the best opportunities for hospitality and tourism stakeholders, students, and enthusiasts to have hands-on learning.

“This will also expose them to perspectives on the sustainability of developing tourism destinations, using activities of gastronomy festivals as promotional tools.

“This year’s event will attract more foreign missions and corporate Nigeria brands involved in food and beverage processing, research, and development,” he said.

Kangiwa noted that activities slated for the two-day event included Nigerian food and beverage exhibition by NIHOTOUR and other leading restaurant franchises; international cuisines showcasing by foreign missions in Nigeria and cooking competition by Nigerian culinary schools.

He said other activities were: ‘Jollof War’ by select west African chefs and investiture of NIHOTOUR fellowship on outstanding individuals who have immensely contributed to the development of hospitality and tourism sectors in Nigeria.

“There would also be conferences involving Nigeria’s leading tourism and hospitality stakeholders and business operators, as members of the Hospitality and Tourism Sector Skills Council of Nigeria (HTSSCN).

“NIHOTOUR would deliver training and masterclass for members of the Association of Nigerian Journalists and Travel Writers (ANJET).

“The facilitators slated for ANJET training include Mr. Buky Ponle, the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and Chief Olusegun Runsewe, the Director General of National Council for Arts and Culture.

“We also have Peter Igho, the brain behind some of the most popular programmes on Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) that enthralled households in the 1970s and the 1990s,” he said. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Vincent Obi

By Taiye Olayemi

The National Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transporters of Nigeria,  (ATBOWATON ) has congratulated Gov. Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State for his re-election in Saturday’s polls..

Dr Gani Balogun, National President of ATBOWATON, congratulated the governor in a statement on Tuesday.

Balogun said he worked in partnership with Mr Tope Fajemirokun, Waterfront Boat Operators and Water Transporters Association (WABOTAN) to mobilise a coalition of trade operators and ferry services entrepreneurs to campaign for Sanwo-Olu.

He said the governor deserved to win based on his first term scorecard, adding that Lagos waterways transportation ecosystem would benefit from his dedication and passion.

” Both ATBOWATON and WABOTAN, are well pleased with Gov. Sanwo-Olu’s re-election.

” During the campaign, we took a position based on what he brought to the table,  particularly in carrying us along in rebuilding and calibrating the entire ecosystem of the sector.

” Our associations are ready,  really ready to mobilise and activate both the socio economic and security opportunities in water tourism  and logistics.

” It is big business elsewhere and we shall work with the governor and LASWA leadership to open this frontier,” he said.

Also, Fajemirokun said that the two bodies would be available as bridge and plank to open more rural areas to boats and ferry services.

He prayed that the governor would empower the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) to facilitate full realisation of making waterways transportation a dream economy.

” We are comfortable with the leadership of LASWA which delivers professionally on the governor’s road map on water transportation.

” We are also willing to partner the governor in reaching out and finding solutions to challenges of full empowerment of operations.

” Particularly as verifiable contributors to state financial purse and the provision of skills acquisition opportunities and jobs in boat business,” he said. (NAN) (nannews.ng)

Edited by Oluwole Sogunle

By Justina Auta

Some stakeholders have stressed the need to embrace cultural diversity to promote unity, peace and development in the society.

They made the call on Saturday at a World Cross Cultural Day celebration organised by Safe Heritage Crest Academy in Abuja.

Mrs Feyikemi Arolasafe, Proprietress of the academy, said diverse cultures, values and ways of life, showed the rich cultural history and heritage of a people, hence should not be allowed to go extinct.

Arolasafe said the event was aim at showcasing the school as a cross-cultural and cultural inclusiveness academy.

This, she said would prepared the students to adapt to various cultures, wherever they find themselves in future.

“As such, we need not perceive a country’s culture as an aspect of another country rather; it should be allowed to stand on its own.

“Every country is unique and we should embrace each other cultural diversities for unity, progress and prosperity of one another.

“We are training world conscious students and pupils who will find themselves tomorrow in various parts of the world as undergraduates, graduates and professionals.

“They will perfectly fit into the societies as responsible ambassadors,’’ she said.

Arolasafe said the event brings hopes, hope for harmony and peace between all races, tribes and religions in Nigeria, particularly at a time that the country was challenged.

“We hope to see the young generations inspired by the values of culture.

“This event will continue to promote sustainable peace, togetherness, co-existence and development that promote prosperity for this country and the world at large,’’ she said.

Also, Mr Gbenga Arolasafe, the school Chief Operating Officer, said: “the world is rich in cultural diversity and we want to make our children aware of this at an early age.

“We want them to appreciate various diversities in culture, languages, fashion, food, academic system.

“This will help them in their education because once they are aware of all these, they will not get overwhelmed when they travel to other countries because they are already familiar with their lifestyle.

He called on the government and other stakeholders to implement policies that would improve quality education standard in Nigeria.

One of the students, Miss Precious Enoma, said the cultural celebration would enable students, from an early age to know the different cultures especially their languages, fashion, music, arts and literature.

Other highlights of the day were, various food presentation, music, dance, drama and other activities showcasing various cultures in Nigeria, Jamaica, South Africa, India, France and China by the students. (NAN)www.nannews.ng

Edited by Dorcas Jonah/Isaac Aregbesola

By Taiye Olayemi

A cross-section of stakeholders in the creative industry on Sunday frowned at the drafting of the Creative Industry Development Bill (CIDB) without their input.

They expressed their grievances during a consultative meeting of the creative industry stakeholders with Col. Felix Alaita, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Country Risk Assessment and Evaluation), the initiator of the bill.

This was held at the Terra Kulture, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The stakeholders said that though the content of the bill was such that would spur growth in the industry, the stakeholders ought to be involved in each stage of the drafting process.

Mr Israel Eboh, National President, National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP), said it was disheartening to know that the CIDB was being drafted without proper consultations with the key stakeholders in the industry.

Eboh noted that the stakeholders happened to know the challenges of the sector and what is required in advancing the industry and as such, should be carried along.

He explained that there were too many components of the industry that had not been captured in the bill.

According to him, this can lead to lopsided development in the industry which has accounted for the reason the industry has not grown to expectation.

” We appreciate the bill but the process is what is questioned. We believe that the MDAs and the relevant agencies that are already established by law, operating within this field should be carried along.

” If these bodies and stakeholders do not key into the bill, there would be conflicting interest and that is one of the problems the sector is currently confronted with,” he said.

Also, Jahman Anikulapo, a culture archivist advised that the Nigerian cultural policies and endowment fund for the arts should be captured in the bill and put in proper perspective.

Similarly, Victor Okhai, National President, Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN), in utmost surprise said: “The idea of the bill is good and well appreciated, whatever that will take us to the next level is welcome.

“But if there is no inclusiveness, the bill will not see the light of the day so I advise that you do things the right way to get the full support of the industry”.

Earlier, Alaita explained that the bill had been drafted five times and going into the 6th draft when the stakeholders involvement was presently needed.

He said the essence of the bill was absolutely to advance the creative industry in Nigeria, considering the numerous challenges hindering its growth over the years.

He noted that the content of the bill made provisions for training, funding, skill upgrading and ability to conduct research for every practitioner in the creative space.

He explained that the bill was an executive one and a commission would be established to interface with the stakeholders.

“We are looking at broad framework without which you cannot achieve efficiency to grow.

” We want to create framework to prevent you from being exploited because exploitative tendencies are building up outside our shores. We also want to look at how royalties are treated.

” We hope to explore advertising and architecture aspects of the creative space which have not been captured and we will engage to learn and build up knowledge for our collective benefit, ” he said. (NAN) (nannews.ng)

Edited by Vivian Ihechu

By Taiye Olayemi

The Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilisation (CBAAC) on Thursday harnessed and spurred children’s creativity through a talent hunt, held in commemoration of the Day of the African Child.

The talent hunt event had students from over 10 schools compete in traditional chants, saxophone, talking drum, poetry, piano, folklore, comedy, set drum and cultural dance performances.

The programme with the theme “Harnessing The Creative Talent of the African Child” was held in Lagos.

The participating students presented rib cracking comedies, soul-searching poetries, interesting set drum performances and all.

Hon. Oluwabunmi Amao,  Director-General,  CBAAC, during the programme said that the talent hunt programme was deliberately held to harness children’s talents.

Amao noted that as the day of the African Child was instituted to create awareness on the plight of the African Child, it was also necessary to celebrate the bravery and ingenuity of the African child.

She said as it was known that creativity drives the world economy, there was great need to catch children young to properly harness their potential.

” It is our belief in CBAAC that providing an avenue that nurtures, promotes and enhances the creative talent of the African child was key in preparing them for a better and brighter future.

” The centre has made the day of the African child one of its flagship programmes to be celebrated annually with a talent hunt.

” The initiative will continue to serve as a platform where children can develop their God given talent, showcase their creative skills, mingle and exchange ideas with their peers and air their views on issues that affect their wellbeing,” she said.

Amao advised the participating students to always take every opportunity to develop their talent which was capable of enriching them at the long run.

Dr Sheyi Kehnny, Associate Professor of Music, University of Lagos, who was the head of jury for the programme announced the winners for each category of the competition.

He advised the students not to allow their academics to hinder them from developing your creative ideas.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the schools that participated in the talent hunt included Aunty Ayo International school, Ikoyi; Dowen College, Lekki; Federal Science and Technical College, Yaba; Golden Anchor Group of Schools, Yaba; Iiogbo Junior High School, Ebute-Meta and Mary Anne College, Lagos Island.

Others were: Masterpiece College, Ayoninujesu; Christ the Redeemers Secondary School, Gbagada; STC College, Ojuelegba; De Basic Innovation International School; Top Grade Secondary School, Surulere and Queens College, Yaba.

For each category of the competition, the children were rewarded.

Those with first position were given N100,000, the second position got N80,000 while those with third position were given N50,000.

Each of the participating students was also given a certificate of participation.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Vivian Ihechu

By Salisu Sani-Idris

The Federal Government has stepped up measures to foster innovation and economic growth through the Nigeria Creative Industries Development Bill (CIDB).

The CIDB Lead, retired Col. Felix Alaita, who made the disclosure at the Ministries, Departments, Agencies and Parastatal’s Consultation Session to Review the proposed draft of the Nigeria Creative Industry Development Bill, held on Wednesday in Abuja.

Alaita, who is the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Country Risk Assessment and Evaluation, said that CIDB project was a collaborative effort between Nigeria’s creative industry and the Presidency.

He added that it was aimed at transforming the Nigerian creative space through regulation and an executable action plan.

The presidential aide also said that the bill would build a vibrant as well as an enabling creative space for Nigerian creative industries.

According to Alaita, Nigeria’s creative talents and industries deserve to be recognised and supported.

He said: “The CIDB will mark the beginning of new era for the creative industries, as it will boost job creation and viable economic growth.

”It will also hep to reshape the economy of creative industries, thereby unleashing the potential of the arts and critical to reversing years of loss and inadequacies in Nigeria.

” Also, the CIDB will pave pave way for leveling the playing field, thereby promoting diversity and inclusivity in the arts, create future of work in the arts, support freelance and gig workers.

” Furthermore, CIDB is envisaged as a critical legislative instrument to drive digital transformation through building bridges between the arts and technology.

”It will also support local arts communities through provision of resources for small and medium-sized arts organisations.”

Similarly, he said the bill was designed to help cultivate the next generation of artists, through to investment in arts education.

It will also serve as a boost for cultural tourism by driving cultural and economic benefits through arts and cultural events.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that organisers of the CIDC event lauded the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari and the Minister of information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed for their commitment towards the success of the programme. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Bashir Rabe Mani