Turning tourism into Nigeria’s new oil

Tomi Akingbogun thinks tourism can easily replace oil as a major revenue earner “We have 160 million people if not more. How many countries have this the world over, apart from China and India? So, we have got the population and we have got cultures and different languages and the rich gift of nature itself. We have got everything, and our attention in the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria, is to actually look inwards.” 

 

The graduate of Animal Science reasons “Oil always finishes, but tourism itself doesn’t. If you go to a zoo to look at the lion, you pay for every other service that is attached. You eat there, drink, enjoy yourself and then you go to your hotel, leaving the lion behind. Some other people will come and do the same thing, and leave the lion behind. So, tourism itself is reusable. It was expected that at one time or the other, oil will disappoint, and that time has come, especially now that we are in a recession. Even if you have your money, you now think twice before going abroad. Before, people wont think before they spend their money, but now they think thrice before they spend.” 

 

Akingbogoun argues that in the light of this background, Nigeria has 160 million citizens who are willing to travel within the country to enjoy and recreate themselves, as they explore the many festivals, performances and sites which the country has on offer. But he laments “The hospitality industry is distressed and this is also because most of the stories which the international media carry about Nigeria are negative, and very little is being done by Nigeria to correct this negative impact because it is expensive.”

 

Drawing attention to some of Nigeria’s strengths, he says “We have got the market and we have the population, and the recession has compelled many Nigerians to look inwards  and  to stay in Nigeria to spend  their holidays. It is our intention to make Nigerians stay in Nigeria. It is only when we have started  consuming our own products, and we start enjoying it, then visitors from the outside would come  to like  what we are fond of. If we are not patronising our tourism destinations and investments, the investors will have no money to improve and update  and we will not be able to invest. The situation in the country has compelled everybody to stay back in the country,and now it is left for us, the investors  in the tourism industry, to come together and get our tour operators to work with the taxi drivers and the airlines, to train them. Typically, the problem we have had in the past is that where people take pictures, it becomes a challenge for some security agencies to understand that taking pictures does not imply a security breach, because you can go online and see any place,anyway. We need to also train our security men, and then tell our tourists that there are areas we don’t take pictures, like the airports. But outside, in the streets, people should be allowed to take pictures and enjoy their stay in Nigeria. Even immigration officers should be friendly, because they are the ones  who welcome visitors and tourists to Nigeria. We have got a lot of education to do for the government  agencies, to  make them realise that they need to work for the private sector, and not to milk the private sector.Policies must be made to be friendly  to the expansion and growth of the economy itself.”

 

He now speaks about the Federation Of Tourism Associations Of Nigera (FTAN ) of which he is President “This is the umbrella body that represents all tourism investors, practitioners, professionals, and  the private sector in the country. We have the tour operators, taxi drivers, airlines, hotel owners, swimming pool owners, and owners of parks and gardens. The organised private sector which FTAN is representing, has more than 25 different trade groups  and associations, and in each of them there are thousands of professionals, and we have  representatives in all the states.” FTANs dream of making Nigeria a tourism destination, is also anchored on an event currently holding at the Sheraton, Abuja. This according to Akingbogun, “is the Nigerian tourism investors forum and exhibition. Local governments will be there,as well as state governments, and government parastatals. Security agencies, taxi drivers, and airlines will be there too. Its a place that gives unique opportunities to local governments, state governments and the federal government to attract, as well as discuss with private investors. In a recession this becomes a tremendous opportunity to showcase what you have. NTIFE is an opportunity for government agencies to come and tell us the relative advantages  in their areas, and what will make me leave Abuja to go and invest in Ondo State. Is it that you are going to give me C of O  within a week, or that I will enjoy a tax holiday for a period. Do you have manpower that I can tap into?”

 

On security challenges in the country “Every challenge that people see today, is a tremendous opportunity for investors. Some foreigners are making billions monthly, just by providing security in the country. You need to learn how to provide that security. There’s no country in this world that does not have its own security problem. Even America has its own terrorism challenge. Egypt, despite all the trouble it had recently, tourists are still going there. They have problems in all these countries, but the press there plays it down. It is left for us to realise that for every bad situation, there are fantastic opportunities, and I must tell you that this is one country  where your investment  gives you tremendous yield, and this is because the population is there  and Nigerians know what is good and constantly improve on it.” 

 

On the need for a tourism fund, he explains “We need to have a long term fund which, however, is very rare in Nigeria. But a 25% interest rate is not good for the hospitality sector, and this is not good for tourism. Tourism itself sometimes requires that you take it out of a densely populated area, so there must be a kind of differential interest rate for investment in different areas. Thats why we have been calling on government to put  in place a tourism bank. The major thing is when you have a bank and you have a fund and you say 100 billion dollars  is going to be made available for this bank, the  fact is money grows  in a bank, whereas if you have just a fund and you disburse the fund, you won’t get the money back. But if it is  a bank, you secure the loan and since it is secured you don’t lose your money.”

 

He declares “We are calling on Nigerian civil servants  to understand that now that oil is gone, we need to utilise the numbers that we have. We need to package ourselves and patronize our own destinations, and that’s when people will be coming from outside. We don’t need foreigners for now. All we need to do  is to encourage Nigerians to stay in Nigeria. We have got the numbers and we have got the money. Lets develop what we have and let us grow it as a product that we ourselves will consume, then it will be easy for those outside to come in, and it’s  cheaper for them to come into Nigeria.”

 

His vision for Nigeria five years down the line “I can see that the economy will pick up in the next two years. Right now, despite the recession we are the strongest on the continent. This is the time to invest in the tourism industry in Nigeria. I call on investors to invest in the tourism sector. For example, we have the national parks which are up for privatization. This is because government cannot run this industry. It should only make policies that make business easy for the private sector to run.” He refers to the Jabi lake in Abuja, a potential tourist site “In Abuja, Jabi lake is a gold mine. Its  not a place you allow private people to build their houses. It’s supposed to be a tourism zone, and it should have swimming pools, riding areas, canoes, restaurants etc. There should be real activity around there, for water has  a positive effect on health.” He also speaks of the green areas of the FCT “There is the national children’s zoo which not many people know about. We are prepared to invest in it. But it’s  not easy to have access to these things because there are civil servants and government agencies which are holding tightly to these facilities,and that is one of the major problems that we have.” 

 

He looks  forward to the day when the new standard gauge rail line would run from Abuja to Lagos, and also a time when our bad roads would have been tackled, both which would  have a positive effect on tourism. There are countless tourist spots in Nigeria, he adds drawing attention to “the unique beaches in the south south, as well as its white sand beaches which can’t be compared to any in other parts of the world. There are the Coconut groves of Badagry,and the fact that Nigeria has the highest number of butterfly varieties in the world. In cross rivers are the endangered species of Gorilla which many tourists would love to see. Some parts of the far north remind you of sand dunes in Dubai.” The list is endless.