Yemisi Izuora
The Managing Director of Jumia’s hotel and flight marketplace, Omolara Adagunodo, has set out a tourism agenda for the administration of new Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-olu.
Adagunodo in a press statement called on the governor to focus onsustainable tourism to further boost the chances of Lagos becoming a 21st-century economy, take the Nigerian tourism industry to the next level and ensure that the sector contributes more to the state’s Gross Domestic Product.
“Like the previous Lagos administration, I am happy that the new government featured tourism as one of its developmental agenda. As the government is settling down to work, I encourage the administration to concentrate on Sustainable Tourism.
“This is because the next phase of tourism is for it to become sustainable, and for Lagos to establish a robust tourism industry, it requires a roadmap that takes full account of tourism’s current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities.
“In fact, a combined report by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, International Trade Centre and Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) reveal that tourism (sustainable) is widely recognized as a key sector for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), given its major potential to contribute to jobs and wealth creation in the developing world. Tourism is estimated to represent 10% of global GDP and generates directly or indirectly one in ten jobs globally.
“Interestingly, the development agenda of the Governor is geared towards achieving sustainable tourism. Tagged Project THEME, the administration’s pillars of development will focus on traffic and transportation, health and the environment, education and technology,” she said.
Adagunodo added that alongside sustainable tourism, the government should invest massively in infrastructure, give a facelift to the state’s tourism assets, look into taxation challenges in the hospitality industry as well as the ratings and classification of hotels.
She urged the government to consolidate on the commendable tourism work of the previous administration