How we intend to halt the stealing of Nigeria’s artifacts – Minister
How has it been since your assumption of office as the minister of tourism? It is quite interesting and challenging. I have found in the ministry a very interesting place to serve, because the mandate of the ministry is the mandate that is supposed to be very dear to Nigerians: our culture, the development of […]
How has it been since your assumption of office as the minister of tourism?
It is quite interesting and challenging. I have found in the ministry a very interesting place to serve, because the mandate of the ministry is the mandate that is supposed to be very dear to Nigerians: our culture, the development of tourism and of course, the issue of national orientation within the Nigerian polity and I am happy to say that I have learnt a lot because learning is a continuous process. The challenges are enormous because the sector has not been receiving the desired attention. There is still a lot to be done, but on the whole, it has been quite challenging and interesting.
You are clamouring to promote foreign earning through culture and tourism. How do you think this can be achieved and what are the likely challenges you foresee?
Globally, it has been accepted that tourism is one of the main drivers of the national economy, whether domestic or international tourism. The major challenges that are being faced in Nigeria are on the issue of raising awareness for domestic tourism, of course, they are challenges with respect to capacities, we have not said we have gone far in our potential package for external earning, to be able to bring people in to this country and to be able to convince people domestically that tourism is a tool for national development. We may have some other issues that border on legislation and some infrastructural gaps that are yet to be filled and that pose a great challenge to our ability to compete favourably with our preferred destinations, including the sub-region and of course within Africa. But, government over this period, has been doing its best. Before I came, you all know that the Nigeria tourism master plan has been put in place, there are efforts to implement it and one would not say that much has been achieved but something has been achieved and what we are trying to do now is to ensure we put the whole process back on track for us to be able to implement the tourism master plan. In Nigeria we have a lot of potentials in all aspect of tourism both the natural and the physical way, they are very abundant in Nigeria, what we really need is to exploit these potentials to the fullest for us to be able to derive the benefits abound. We are in the process of revitalizing the implementation of the tourism master plan. We are in touch with the United Nations World Tourism Organization. They have given us a proposal and we have sent back the proposal to the UNDP through the National Planning Commission. And we have called for a meeting of the steering committee of the presidential council of tourism. All these are efforts towards ensuring that we are synergized to be able to implement the tourism master plan, with a view to deriving the benefits that are inherent in it.
What is the ministry doing towards the Nigeria at 50 event?
The ministry is part of the Nigeria at 50 committee, constituted by the late president and chaired by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation. The ministry heads the exhibition sub-committee. It is spearheading the variety night, the gala night and the historical exhibition. These are events that have been lined up by Nigeria at 50 steering committee and have been well articulated. The content is going to be very exciting and the logistics are on and we believe that as soon as the first event that relates to this ministry starts, that is the historical exhibition on 16th of September, we will be able to showcase to Nigerians the ability of this ministry to really produce the events that are of high quality with content that can compete favourably all over the world.
What plans are you making to ensure the celebration is not only in Abuja but other parts of the country?
For us in the ministry, it is only to the extent that we are inviting some states that will participate in the durbar, masquerade, boat regatta and some cultural troupes will come for the variety night. It was agreed that states should fashion out their own at the state level so that everybody will have a feel of the 50th anniversary.
On Nigerian artifacts that were stolen years ago, what exactly is being done to recover them?
This September, there will be a UNESCO meeting in Paris based on illicit trafficking of artifacts and Nigeria is part of the countries that are championing the cause and it is a continuous process. We need the cooperation of the international community to be able to stop this illicit trafficking, it requires collaboration with the international community and UNESCO is spearheading that and the ministry will be represented.
What can we do in appreciating domestic tourism in the country?
Domestic tourism promises to be a very good market for us. What is more important for us is to be able to educate people on the need to preserve and appreciate what they have, and of course, use what they have for them to be able to gain economically. In the ministry, for instance, we are trying to build cultural industries within the country. That is to say we look at the locality, find out what they use and build on it and with that people around will start appreciating what they have. We are making efforts but what is important is that we need a lot of sensitization which does not squarely rest only on the government. The awareness has to be created by the government, by the media and the practitioners; alot falls on them because it is like a product which you market for people to appreciate. We need to really educate the citizenry on the importance of these products and the advantages of domestic tourism.The media people need to do alot.
What efforts are you making to bring changes to the economy of the country through tourism?
It depends on how we develop our tourism potentials. If we develop the domestic tourism, the local tourism and the international tourism, if we develop it, all across the country, it will increase the GDP of this country; it will also reduce unemployment and poverty. One good thing about tourism is that it is spread; each locality has something to offer, where people within the locality will benefit economically and that will reduce their dependence on other things. To that extent the economy will be improved and it will raise the GDP of the country.