Tourism Minister, Mrs Lola Ade-John, Thursday in Abuja promised to collaborate with the members of the Nigeria Association of Tour Operators ( NATOP) in its intentional quest to promote Nigeria’s tourism sites and landmarks, not excluding the diverse cultural heritage.

The minister who made the promise when she received the president of NATOP, Mrs Bolaji Mustapha, and her executives, expressed her excitement at the focal intention of the nigerian tour trade practitioners to visit the entire stretch of country’s vast landscape, to process, under study, package and promote the various tourism , hospitality, festivals and heritage offerings associated the Nigerian people to the world and to Nigerians in particular.

” We shall partner together, and I do assure you of my ministry support and encouragement. Going forward, we shall endeavour to invite and carry your association along in whatever we are going to do. We need you to furnish us with a list of your accredited members and when we are going to present the tourism policy, which we think we needed to review, we shall invite Natop to look at it and further add values to the document ” she explained.

On fund support to NATOP activities and facilitating efforts to showcase Nigeria at the World Travel Market( WTM) , the minister stated that the ministry is working around tourism budget which currently cannot help drive the many pending tourism projects of the ministry and indeed, may impact on the ministry’s participation at the global tourism trade event this year in London but assured that at the next budgetary releases next year, Nigeria will take giant steps to showcase her tourism offerings to the world.

” We are constrained financially for now and can’t do much but hopefully by next year budget, we should have done our home work well and I assure you that we are going to do many tourism projects together because what you did during the world Tourism Day in lagos, was the way to go in promoting Nigeria which is very dear to my heart” the Minister enthused.

NATOP president, who visited the minister in company of her deputy, Ms Geraldine itoe, the National Publicity Secretary Onyeka John, Financial Secretary Ms Ogugua Anobili,and Deputy national Secretary, Joy Alexander Oziegbe, had earlier briefed the minister on association’s short and long term plans to intentionally market Nigeria’s rich tourism assets and also of their intention to participate at the world Travel market.

“We are here to assure you and the ministry of our partnership and collaboration to market Nigeria’s diverse offerings cutting across cultural heritage, ecological tourism, hospitality, festivals, and fashion. We are interested in sharing our knowledge concerning Nigerian tourism policy and other industry related concerns, which would help reposition our tourism within the domestic and international space” Natop president explained, adding that the association would reinvent the strategic socioeconomic importance of tourism economy to job creation and empowerment of the people, with eyes on improved global ranking as a destination to visit in Africa.

” We have started looking inwards, and in weeks and months to come, Natop will embark on project rediscover Nigeria and, with it, glavernise the states and local authorities and the Nigerian people to think Nigeria culture and tourism first. Nigeria tourism is important to us, and we want to have your ministry’s backing in this noble effort, ” NATOP president further explained.