Austine Eneduwa-George
The Nigerian tourism industry, which has all the potential her next black gold after the end of the Coronavirus pandemic ravaging the world and its disruptive effects on activities in the entertainment, tourism, aviation, hospitality including sporting industries not notwithstanding, is in a sorry state.
Mr. Austine Eneduwa-George, a tourism expert ann an authority in the sector, who made that assertion also argued that the country ought to have made a kill in the tourism industry long before now, if its leaders had not arrested development in the sector.
Eneduwa-George who was also The First Vice President of Lagos State Federation of Tourism Practitioners Association of Nigeria, posited that tourism would have been what the country could easily fall back to when the COVID-19 might have gone given that the price of oil in the international market has hit an all time low, pointing out that with the near zero development attention accorded tourism sites that liter all the states of the country, it would take time for Nigeria to recover from the effects of the pandemic.
Said he: “Tourism is the low hanging fruit that the country would have relied on to shake off the effect of the pandemic, but what do we have, undeveloped sites.
“The case of Lagos and the beaches are quite unique and strange. All the beaches except for the bar beach which belongs to families or communities, which the baale and his cronies run their affairs. It might surprise you to know the Lagos State government has no say. The communities don’t have the money to provide the infrastructures required to keep a beach resort despite the fact that they collect gate fees but share amongst themselves rather than invest it in the business.
“”Hence,when the roads leading to the beach become unpassable, the beach shuts down and they wait for the same government you asked to stay away to come help you fix the road so you can stay in business. Alfa, Lekki, Oniru etc are just a few examples. The most sensible thing would have been for the communities to approach the government through the Waterfront Ministry for partnership with a strategic revenue formula but for greed or lack of mutual trust, that just might be a hindrance”.
According to him, it is not for nothing that Lagos State is referred to as the city of aquatic splendor and boasts of beaches that she can make billions from annually but for the carefree attitude of government towards tourism.
Same story of woe he has to tell of Delta State, which boasts of the Lander Brothers Anchorage, yet the government(s) of the state, has done nothing to tap the full potential of the Anchorage that is in strategic area of the state capital and capable of attracting tourists from neighbouring Anambra and Imo states.
Stated he: “Delta boasts of all sorts of tourism attractions. From the itshekiri to Urhobo land down to the rich Igbo culture in the Anioma land with over 100 tribes and cultures between. The Lander Brothers, Mungo Park expedition routes are just but a few cultural heritage, boat regatta; the riverine shores of the central are potential for a port, the hilltop landscapes of Anioma land. Its unfortunate most of our people in government have believe issue and what you can’t see in your imagination or subconscious, you cannot desire to see in reality.There are resorts in Aniocha South, Oshimili and the Ika LGAs that can create jobs, exposure, relaxation, recreation and most of all, daily revenue for both community located there and government. I have a blue print of all these already and doesn’t require much money to achieve”.
He agreed that tourism development is a capital intensive venture saying “the tourism business is a huge capital business. If you are not inspired from within with a passion for the industry, you won’t have the confidence to do much. I’m a tourism development and hospitality management consultant and by so, I’ve seen and meet a lot of people who think they have the passion until they get to the shore and suddenly develop cold feet. Many Nigerians would only want to invest in businesses they can put money in January and by April they are already yielding profits. The tourism industry is pretty slow but rewarding in the long run. For instance, as of today, there’s no standard zoo in the whole of the country, there are many individuals with the means but a zoo business won’t start yielding till about three years. We have individuals that can build a 10,000 sitter auditorium to host all events, attract WWE to host one of their series in Nigeria, halls that can host world boxing fights, concerts. I as a person have set up different kinds of outlets that ordinary wasn’t considered. When I set up Corner Pocket, a strictly pool and bar outfit. it was strange to many until it started panning out, same thing when I set up Cazzbah Club, again it was seen as a strange venture and people kept telling me how the society might not buy into it. I guess we know the story today. The problem is that we don’t have enough people that believe in the tourism industry to want to do something. You need the likes of Donald Duke, myself, to be in the position to deliver on these just like the owner of La Campigane Tropicana, Whispering Palms and co.”
Said he: As a tourism professional and practitioner, I’ve approached different agencies of government both at federal and states level to provide a blueprint for tourism growth but most times it was shrugged off because it’s not coming from some white dude or Chinese. I first proposed to the Jonathan government the need to have visas on arrival back in 2011 and I became an advocate for that, which I always bring up the issue on every forum I find myself. Drafted a bill to the National Assembly. If at least first to reciprocate to the countries that grant us visa on arrival then to individuals we know have real business to do in Nigeria, like when you hear, Guinness president or Nestle Africa manager is coming to visit the company, they should be no hindrance because these business people don’t have time to keep going to embassies for visa issuance. Dubai generates over four billion dollars today from just visa fees with their electronic visa system. They have grown to tourists today due to the ease of securing their Visa. Most Nigerians planning honeymoon or vacation and have their visa application turned down by Europe or America take that money and head to UAE with ease and UAE becomes the beneficiary of the largese. Nigeria can achieve better and quicker than most other in sub Sahara.
