Reviving Nigeria’s tourism fortunes after COVID-19

Since it broke out in China more than a year ago, the deadly Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has hit every aspect of life, halting progress in every human endeavour.

Total lockdowns, social distancing, wearing of facemasks and other measures taken to mitigate its spread have impacted negatively on all sectors of the global economy with some suffering devastating blows.

Tourism, a gold mine that rakes in billions of dollars annually, appears worst hit as international travels were banned, while social gatherings and non-essential activities were grounded in most countries of the world.

In Nigeria, the sector suffered a huge blow as all tourist sites were shut down.

Worried by that negative impact and dwindling fortunes, the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) recently organised a stakeholders’ forum in Jos to brainstorm on ways to recover from the impact of the menace.

Mr John-Likita Best, Managing Consultant, Tourism Ideas Promotion Services, painted a scary picture of the situation when he disclosed that 120 million jobs were at risk globally, due to the negative impact of COVID-19.

Quoting United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNTWO) report, he said N1.2 trillion dollars was being lost globally, because of the pandemic.

In a paper titled: “The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Tourism and Hospitality Industry in Nigeria and the Way Forward”, he reported that international tourists arrivals worldwide was reduced by 1.1 billion.

The Director General of NTDC, Mr Folorunsho Coker, said the NTDC was aware of the far-reaching impacts of the virus on tourism and the hospitality ecosystem in Nigeria, hence the initiative to put together the stakeholders forum.

Coker explained that the forum was organised to collectively develop proactive and sustainable ideas that would help the sector to recover from the pandemic.

“Its negative impacts are correspondingly reflected in the loss of revenues, employment and livelihoods at varying degrees for our stakeholders.

He suggested that Nigeria must consider and deploy innovative recovery solutions that were home grown and practically tailored for its specific environment and people.

“The solutions should offer healing for the people, healing for prosperity and healing for destinations, he said.

Coker explained that NTDC conceived the “Tour Nigeria” brand to drive domestic consumption of tourism products in Nigeria, commercialise tourism and generate employment.

“The brand identifies, explores, exposes, enhances and promotes creative assets across the country, using sustainable approaches.

“We believe that an entrepreneurial mindset to tourism business brings a fresh innovative perspective to tourism governance,” he said.

As part of the initiative toward reviving the sector, Coker said the NTDC was developing some key sites to make them national treasures.

One of such sites, he said, is the Kurra Falls located in Barkin Ladi Local Government of Plateau.

Coker advocated a review of tourism laws in the country so as to ease its development.

“We need a legal framework that is 2021 compliant with best global practices for the industry to fully takeoff and thrive.

“We have laws that are very old; for example, there is a difference between a 30-year-old Mercedes Benz car and a brand new Mercedes. The old laws need to be reviewed and other ones enacted.

Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau lauded the NTDC initiative to brainstorm and devise ways to help cushion the impact of COVID-19 on the sector, pointing out that Plateau was blessed with abundant tourism potential waiting to be harnessed.

He urged the NTDC to consider developing other tourist sites when it completes making Kurra Falls a national treasure.

The governor stated that the Board and management of the Hydro Electric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPADEC) had recently visited Kurra Falls to consider ways of reviving the plant.

“If that is achieved, the best place for tourism to thrive will be the Kurra Falls.

Mrs Tamwakat Weli, Plateau Commissioner for Tourism, Culture and Hospitality, said the interaction was vital and critical to the tourism sector development, not only in Nigeria, but the world over.

“The choice of this theme, ‘The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Tourism and Hospitality Industry in Nigeria and the Way Forward’ is very apt as the industry is the worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is an obvious fact that since the emergence of the pandemic, there have been international, national and state restrictions on travels and movements of people.

“Equally, there were series of lockdowns which led to massive cancellations of tourism and hospitality services at destinations across the globe.

“This unfortunate development led to unprecedented huge financial losses, folding up of many corporate tourism businesses and job losses for tourism/ hospitality industry workers,” she said.

Mr Isaac Sanda, Chairman, Trustees of Wayfarers of Jos Hiking and Adventures Club, said domestic tourism industry had been suffering from little awareness and poorly packaged and advertised tourism opportunities prior to the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sanda added that the sector was being drawn down by poor physical infrastructure, very bad communication systems, insufficient security and healthcare, as well as unclear tourism visions.

“These myriads of complexities have been worsened by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“At the end of 2020, the World Travel and Tourism Council estimated that about 75 million tourism jobs were lost worldwide.

“The International Air Travel Association says 50 per cent of lost jobs in aviation may be permanent.

“These damning statements should be a cause for grave concern.

“But there is a way forward – the country and, indeed the whole world, must seek innovative ideas and solutions to jumpstart economies and regain employment numbers as we also seek medical and scientific remedies to the pandemic,” he said. (NANFeatures)

The UN Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking Water put the figure of Nigerians who do not have access to safe drinking water at 67 million while 42 per cent of households do not have access to clean water. This number is alarming and bodes ill for the public health and safety of citizens

What does water mean to you? This was the question asked on March 22nd as the world celebrated World Water Day. The International water day aimed to draw attention to the global water situation, the need for effective water management as global water systems/aquifers continue to shrink and the stress faced by marginalised communities who lack access to water.

It is a great step that the day was celebrated in Nigeria to create awareness on the lack of clean water in rural communities, but it should not stop at picture posting or story-telling, something must be done about the issue. Creating awareness alone on the lack of access to clean water in rural communities once a year isn’t enough to drive the sustainable change that will bring about the realisation of SDG 6 in Nigeria. Stronger and intentional political action is needed to bridge the widening gap between the entire population and the number that have access to clean water. Without actions being taken of what use is the knowledge. According to J.W. Von

Goethe, “knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do”. And no truer words have been spoken, the knowledge is simply not enough it must be applied.

The importance of water in our lives cannot be overemphasised. Water is life, it is more than just a basic need it is a fundamental human right. We need water just as much as we need the air we breathe. The sacrosanct nature of water is heightened when issues bordering around hygiene and sanitation are put in perspective.

It’s really a thing of concern how persons in marginalised communities survive with little access to clean water. Their daily struggle to access water which in many cases is unclean and contaminated predisposes them to a lot of dangers and hazards. For many women and girls; they are exposed to sexual and gender-based violence, their menstrual hygiene is threatened and productive time is lost. For school children; they lose productive school time simply because they have to go in search of water. In general, many rural communities are vulnerable to disease outbreak that are water related such as cholera and these also contribute to money lost to emergency aid provided by government thereby impacting the

GDP of the nation.

In Nigeria, poor access to clean water and sanitation has been a developmental issue plaguing numerous communities around the country. Lack of access to clean water seemed more or less a rural area problem but slowly this problem has started creeping its way into some periurban and urban areas. According to UNICEF, “seventy-three percent of the diarrheal disease burden is associated with poor access to adequate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), and children from poorer homes are largely affected by this”. These WASH related illnesses sometimes lead to poor performance in school and even malnutrition in children. Some other studies show that poor access to water and sanitation leads to open defecation. It is quite evident that poor access to water has a domino effect in our society. Issues pertaining to water can never be isolated, because in its absence it creates more problems and hinders our progress.

Nuhu Joseph a community leader in Rije community of Kuje Area Council, spoke with HipCity Innovation Centre (HipCity Hub) on the lack of clean water in his community. He said, to them water is more of a luxury than a necessity, most of the boreholes in his community are either nonfunctional or inadequate to cater for the residents of the community. They have resorted to getting their water from a stream close by as they lack the funds to repair the damaged boreholes and help from the government is not forthcoming. The source of water Joseph spoke of was clearly unfit for drinking and other domestic uses, but this is reality for the residents of Rije community and several other suburbs in the Federal Capital Territory.

The UN Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking Water put the figure of Nigerians who do not have access to safe drinking water at 67 million while 42 per cent of households do not have access to clean water. This number is alarming and bodes ill for the public health and safety of citizens.

It is the duty of the State through its appendage Water Boards and the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RUWASSA) to provide safe and clean drinking water for all citizens. For efficiency and greater output, they are expected to work with local governments in their various states to ensure each local community is adequately catered for. There is an obvious need for the government to re-strategise and double their efforts in ensuring the provision of clean and safe water for all Nigerians.

With proper monitoring and evaluation; progress can easily be tracked and areas that are still lacking or in need of maintenance can effectively be given the attention they require. It is not enough to just create awareness on water challenges, the government must keep their promises and be held accountable because they owe the people this duty.

Joining the global commemoration of March 22 shouldn’t just end at government making political statement it must be matched with strong political will and commitment to rescue over 60 million Nigerians facing water poverty.

Oduah wrote from HipCity Innovation Centre, Abuja.