NNAEMEKA MERIBE
10 March 2004
Lagos — Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), Lagos zonal office, in conjunction with Lagos State Waterfront and Tourism Development Corporation (LWTDC), Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Hotels and Tourism and four other agencies last week organised a seminar on Sustaining Excellence in Hospitality Industry in Lagos State. Correspondent NNAEMEKA MERIBE who was at the workshop chronicles proceedings at the event and writes that such workshop should be replicated in other states in the country to give tourism a boost.
THE catalytic role of tourism in the economic development of any nation cannot be overemphasised. The tourism industry, indeed, has proven to be a honey pot for countries that have tapped into it.
Success stories of how tourism has revived ailing economies abound. Even land-locked countries that are poor in mineral resources and backward technologically have maintained an enviable level of affluence because of their appreciation of the enormous benefits derivable from a well developed tourism industry.
However, there can never be a well developed tourism industry without a viable hospitality sector. The hospitality sector of the industry which includes among others; hotels, inns, restaurants and bukaterias, provides for tourists the needed rest after a long day's sight seeing. Of a truth, this sector is the backbone of the tourism industry. If it is not made to conform to acceptable international standard, there is no doubt that growth of the tourism industry in the country would be stunted.
It is, perhaps, the recognition of this fact that motivated the Lagos State zone of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) and Lagos State Waterfront and Tourism Development Corporation (LSWTDC) to organise a workshop on Sustaining Excellence in Hospitality Industry in Lagos State, in conjunction with Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Hotels and Tourism, Hoteliers Association of Nigeria and Terrymore International Promotions, last week in Ikeja.
In her keynote address at the workshop, the chief executive of NTDC, Mrs Omotayo Omotosho noted that the workshop could not have come at a better time than now that the policy thrust of President Olusegun Obasanjo's administration is focused on ensuring a balanced and sustainable economic development in Nigeria using tourism as a stimulus for growth. She added that with positive support of the present democratic government, Nigeria is now poised to develop tourism and take her rightful place in the comity of nations as the ultimate destination.
Mrs Omotosho who acknowledged the importance of recruiting the right calibre of staff in any service establishment urged hotel proprietors to utilise the training opportunities offered by the Nigerian Hotel and Training Schools in Lagos, Kaduna and Enugu states and the National Institute of Hospitality and Tourism (NITOUR) Kano to ensure that their staff are properly trained to be able to cope with the needs of the tourists as tourism is majorly a business of human relations which is not only people oriented but also people dependent.
She expressed confidence that by the end of the workshop, participants would help to reposition the hospitality sector in readiness for the expected boom.
In his speech, the speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly (LAHA) Hon. Jokotolo Pelumi, who declared the workshop open, wondered why tourism in the state has not been able to reach an appreciable height despite its tourism potentials.
While promising that LAHA would do its best to ensure that the tourism potentials of the state are maximised, he regretted however that tourism practitioners have neglected the society and the environment in their quest for profit. He challenged the practitioners to pay back to the society that has given them much.
Also speaking, the managing director of LSWTDC, Prince Adesegun Oniru noted that the hospitality sector as one of the most important components of tourism plays a major part in the day to day life of a tourist by providing accommodation, safety, food, meeting points, among others, adding that through such services, a large sum of tourist budget goes into the hotels. He stressed that the workshop called for a re-opening and re-orientation towards quality services to satisfy the expectations of both local and foreign visitors.
In his paper on Providing an Enabling Environment for Hospitality and Tourism in Lagos State, Mr Metilelu Olusola of the department of Hotel and Catering Management of the Lagos State Polytechnic noted that tourism has been considered as the optional economic tool for socio-economic changes both in developed and less developed countries.
He argued that as international tourism continues to grow, it becomes very clear that a range of tourism destination needs to be developed and sustained in Nigeria. For him, the daily expansion of the hospitality sector has provided great opportunities for both government and individuals to explore. However, he noted that the paramount concept should be providing service, and not just the service of food, drinks and accommodation, but the desire to go an extra mile to provide unique and excellent service in a clean and excellent environment.
While maintaining that tourism and the environment, whether natural or man-made, are inextricably linked, Mr Olusola argued that without a clean and attractive environment, tourism will not flourish or remain sustainable in the long run.
Sustainable tourism, he noted, calls for a long term view of tourism with regard for future inheritance as well as present needs, adding that tourism can only be developed and made more realistic in a country where all the necessary facilities needed for comfort of the tourist are present.
In his critique of the prevailing business environment in the country, he argued that poor transportation system, high interest rate coupled with unstable and high exchange of dollar to naira, have tended to create an environment that is not enabling for the sustainability of tourism.
He maintained that a proper classification of hotels will help form a consensus on standard of hotels and urged government to empower NTDC with appropriate legislative power to execute its function and role in developing tourism in the country.
In his paper on Formulating a United Approach to the Development of Hospitality and Tourism in Lagos State, Chief Babs Karim, President, Hoteliers Association of Nigeria (HAN), Lagos Chapter opined that the government through its relevant agencies at the Federal, State and Local Government levels including security agencies, hospitality and tourism trade associations recognised by government and their members licenced and registered by government, other organisations involved in hospitality and tourism such as breweries and educational institutions and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) such as Women Trafficking and Child Labour Eradication Foundation (WOTCLEF) as well as the customers of the hospitality and tourism industry should all be involved in efforts towards formulating a United approach towards the development of the industry in Nigeria.
While suggesting that government should establish relevant committees of stakeholders for the implementation of tourism and hospitality projects and programmes, he stressed that there is need for unity among stakeholders, adding that regular meetings and conferences should be held to dialogue with the government and other stakeholders with a view to finding solutions to the problems or to resolve differences.
For the HAN boss, the way to develop the hospitality sector in Lagos State is by the collective participation of all stakeholders, making suitable laws and guidelines, training and education of present and future personnel of the industry, provision of enabling environment and infrastructure by government, registration, classification and grading of hospitality outfits and provision of adequate security of house and properties.
Other ways the sector could be developed, according to Chief Karim include: making the laws, conditions and taxes less prohibitive, arranging tourism fund to assist the development of small and medium scale hospitality outfits and uniting the proprietors of the hospitality outfits into a strong association for collective decisions and actions towards the development of the industry.
Mrs Fidel Oyakhilome, Director, Hospitality and Travel Trade, NTDC, in her paper on National Registration of Hospitality and Tourism Enterprises: The Way Forward, argued that if the rich tourism potentials of Nigeria has to be unveiled with a view to fulfilling the national goal of making the country the ultimate tourism destination in the world, then the dire need for continuous improvement of quality of products and services rendered by the hospitality and tourism sector through regular supervision and co-ordination cannot be overemphasised.
She noted that by its enabling law of decree No. 81 of 1992, NTDC amongst its other responsibilities is mandated to register, classify and grade all hospitality and tourism enterprises in the country.
She called for a close co-operation between the state and local governments on the one hand and NTDC staff on the other hand as regards the registration exercise, adding that they should also hold regular meetings to evaluate the progress of the exercise.
While arguing that the success of the registration exercise to a large extent depends on its level of publicity, Mrs Oyakhilome advised that all operators of hospitality and tourism enterprises be well informed through seminars and workshops in order to minimise resistance that may otherwise arise from lack of basic information about the programme. Further, she suggested that the records from the registration exercise be computerised in all NTDC and state offices for easy accessibility to relevant information and to facilitate replies to enquiries from within and outside the country.
On the enforcement of the registration bye-law, she noted that there are penalties for defaulters, consequently, she warned that all stakeholders who fail to comply with the rules and regulation of the registration bye-laws in any form would be prosecuted.
For her, however, the registration would only be a maximum success if there are deliberate efforts made by the three tiers of government to ensure proper funding of the exercise in view of the invaluable benefits, especially with regards to data collection for meaningful planning in the tourism industry.
The workshop, no doubt, provided an opportunity for participants to appreciate the need to maintain standards in their business. It also provided an opportunity for operators of hospitality and tourism enterprises to understand why they must register their business and also ask questions on sections they found hazy.
It is hoped that this kind of workshop should be extended to other states of the federation as the enlightenment that would spring from it would no doubt help in boosting tourism in the country.
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