Since it broke out in China more than a year ago, the deadly Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has hit every aspect of life, halting progress in every human endeavour.
Total lockdowns, social distancing, wearing of facemasks and other measures taken to mitigate its spread have impacted negatively on all sectors of global economy with some suffering devastating blows.
Tourism, a gold mine that rakes in billions of dollars annually, appears worst hit as international travels were banned, while social gatherings and non-essential activities were grounded in most countries of the world.
In Nigeria, the sector suffered a huge blow as all tourist sites were shut down.
Worried by that negative impact and dwindling fortunes, the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) recently organised a ‘stakeholders’ forum in Jos to brainstorm on ways to recover from the impact of the menace.
John-Likita Best, Managing Consultant, Tourism Ideas Promotion Services, painted a scary picture of the situation when he disclosed that 120 million jobs were at risk globally, due to the negative impact of COVID-19.
Quoting United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNTWO) report, he said that N1.2 trillion dollars was being lost globally, because of the pandemic.
In a paper titled: “The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Tourism and Hospitality Industry in Nigeria and the Way Forward”, he reported that international tourists arrivals worldwide was reduced by 1.1 billion.
The Director General of NTDC, Folorunsho Coker, said that the NTDC was aware of the far-reaching impacts of the virus on tourism and hospitality eco-system in Nigeria, hence the initiative to put together the stakeholders forum.
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, all our tourist attractions have been closed, causing a heavy blow to the economy. Resuming tourism after the epidemic is facing great challenges. While doing a good job of preventing the epidemic, we must keep on fighting.