Lobic Meridian GM estimates Imo hospitality, tourism lost N700bn in 2021
THE HOTEL, HOSPITAL ITY AND tourism industry in Imo State, in the south east, regarded as one of Nigeria’s melting pot for the sector, is estimated to have lost in 2021 a staggering sum of over N700 billion to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the menace of insecurity, unknown gunmen, kidnappings, lockdowns, which impeded vehicular movement of goods and services, as well as other operational harsh environmental factors in the South East, a situation which led to capital flight from the state.
George Uwah, a seasoned hospitality and tourism administrator and the general manager of Lobic Meridian Hotel Limited, Owerri, in a telephone interview described the harsh environment in which the sector is operating in the Southeast as unfortunate and said 2021 was a very challenging year.
“And talking about insecurity, for any business to thrive, there must be an assurance of security, the effects of the unconducive business environment, the Covid-19 pandemic, the effects of insecurity in Imo State have also made investors take their funds out of the state. There is capital flight in the hospitality industry, even salaries of most hospitality firms are not paid because of low patronage,” he said.
He has, therefore, appealed to the government to use the stick and carrot approach so as to be able to address the issue of insecurity and harsh operating environment in Imo State.
“What we want is a situation where the government will find a lasting solution to the menace of insecurity because if insecurity is not curbed there will also be the problem of unemployment in the state and the southeast, because it will mean that most hotels will now be laying off workers because they cannot be able to meet up with their wage bills,” Uwah said.
And to stakeholders, specifically investors who have invested their huge funds and potential investors, Uwah urged that they should not lose hope and should change the narrative, speak to people favourably about Imo State and the southeast as their sayings and positive confessions can go a long way to boost the confidence of the people and this will in turn boost the fortunes of the hospitality and tourism industry.
However, he has predicted that the year 2022 will be a favourable year for the hospitality and tourism industry if only the government will find a lasting solution to the issues of insecurity and unfavourable business environment prevailing in Imo State and the southeast in general.
“In 2022, if all these variables are adequately addressed, we propose to have a bountiful harvest in the hospitality industry,” he said with optimism.
Meanwhile, Uwah has informed that Lobic Meridian has been able to implement some measures as shock absorbers to address the menace of low patronage the sector faces.
Lobic Meridian, according to him, has done price adjustment to be able to be competitive in the industry. It has also upgraded its facilities, and has embraced advertising with a strong online presence and interconnectivity in and around the globe, these and others have been helping the hotel to absorb shocks in the industry, the general manager said.
The hotel has also been training and retraining its staff, and engaging in daily briefing of the workforce to be compliant to the latest trends in the hospitality industry.