Hospitality, tourism sectors viable revenue earners for govt – Ortom
Makurdi – Gov. Samuel Ortom of Benue said the hospitality and tourism sectors have the capacity of providing viable alternative options for huge revenue generation to the oil sector for the government.
Ortom stated this while inaugurating the North Central Zonal Campus of the National Institute of Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), on Tuesday in Makurdi.
Ortom commended President Muhammadu Buhari for approving Makurdi, Benue, as the location of the North Central Zonal Campus of the Institute.
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He said, “the hospitality and tourism sectors have provided viable options as huge revenue earners” that has reduced the over concentration on the oil sector.
“As we all know, hospitality and tourism businesses are the driving forces behind the development of most advanced economies of the world.
“It is becoming very clear that the position of oil as the leading revenue earner in most oil producing countries is gradually diminishing.
“For that reason, many countries are looking elsewhere for sustenance, hospitality and tourism sectors have provided viable options as huge revenue earners,“he said.
He said that the State Government would liaise with the Bank of Industry to grant five per cent loans to all graduands and provide scholarship to all amnesty beneficiaries who wished to join the programme.
The governor said his administration believed that the Hospitality and Tourism businesses hold a lot of promises to the wellbeing of the State and its people.
“Plans have been put in place by my administration to ensure that our tourism potentials are adequately developed to attract tourists to the State.
“Our numerous tourism sites are open to Public Private Investment and Partnership.
“We have created a one-stop desk for potential investors to come and take advantage of the vast opportunities that exist in our hospitality and tourism sub-sectors.
Ortom said that the establishment of the Makurdi Campus of NIHOTOUR, would afford the state the opportunity to continue to explore and rediscover more tourism sites in the state.
“This means many of our unemployed youths would be availed the opportunity to develop themselves through a wide range of professional courses being introduced by the Institute here in Makurdi,“he said.
He called on the youths and other persons who may be interested in acquiring skills in these areas to take advantage of the opportunity being presented to them.
Earlier, the Acting Director, National Institute of Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), Dr Momoh Kabir, said the sector was faced with dearth of high quality and certified professionals to meet the demands of the timing consumers.
He was represented by the Director of General Studies, Dr Taiwo Famogbiyele.
Kabir commended the governor for supporting the establishment of the Makurdi Campus.
“It is not in doubt that the Hospitality and Tourism sector in Nigeria is faced with gross dearth of high quality training and certification.
“There is a need to fill the current skills gap in the sector and progressively continue mandatory training that is relevant to employees and even the employers,” he said.
In his remarks, the state’s Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Mrs Ngunan Addingi said the NIHOTOUR Makurdi campus would provide hundreds of employments to North Central youths.
Addingi commended the governor for providing logistics used by the ministry to put the centre in shape for the take off.
She also appealed to him to provide funds for the provision of security guards, cleaners and other administrative staff at the
