Tourism Ministry, NIHOTOUR to upskill tour operators/guides in Ekiti

The Federal Ministry of Tourism in conjunction with National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) will train tour operators and tour guides in Ekiti State, as part of the EcoGenesis Incubator Series.

This was contained in a statement made available to Vanguard on Thursday by the Public Relations Officer, NIHOTOUR, Joesef Karim in Abuja.

According to the statement, the upskilling training will hold for two days, specifically on the 31st of March and the 1st of April 2024. Ekiti State Bureau for Tourism Development will host the training and nominate local tour operators and tour guides to be trained.

This latest EcoGenesis Incubator Series training in Ekiti State is coming on the hills of the success of the maiden EcoGenesis Incubator training recently held in Makurdi, Benue State.

It will be recalled that EcoGenesis Incubator Series is an initiative of the Minister of Tourism, Mrs. Lola Ade-John.

The EcoGenesis Incubator Series is a sustainable tourism entrepreneurship program that targets residents of tourist host communities including women, youths and small cottage services that form parts of destination’s experiences for visitors.

This is the second edition of the program which is being executed across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.

Speaking on the EcoGenesis Incubator training in Ekiti, the Minister of Tourism, Mrs. Lola Ade-John stated “the capacity of host community tourism and hospitality operators, including tour operators and tour guides, are central to overall destination experiences of tourists, both domestic and inbound tourists.

"Therefore, it is essential that the Government provides facilities for basic training, retraining and upskilling of personnel working in the sector, across the country.

“With the EcoGenesis Incubator Series, the Government is providing a dynamic platform that will catalyze innovation and drive economic empowerment of citizens and service providers in tourism host communities and destinations. This will eventually lift many out of poverty by leveraging on the abundant tourism opportunities inherent in our communities across the Nation.”

The National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) has been massively involved in delivering the various trainings and skills development programmes of EcoGenesis Incubator Series, since the inception of the programme.

NIHOTOUR is established by an Act of Parliament to train, certify and register all personnel in Nigeria’s hospitality, travel, and tourism sectors.

The Director General of NIHOTOUR, Nura Sani Kangiwa, while commenting on the scheduled Ekiti State EcoGenesis Incubator upskilling training remarked that, “Globally, in tourism development management, tour operators and tour guides are the levers of the destination’s tourism push and pull factors.

"It is the industry actions of tour operators and tour guides that determines tourists’ arrivals and receipts in host communities.

"Tourism products, both domestic and inbound, are generally packaged by tour operators and guides resident in the destination.”

It is noteworthy that NIHOTOUR is the coordinator of the hospitality and tourism sector skills council of Nigeria (HTSSCN) - an umbrella organization consisting of tourism and hospitality trade associations and allied operators in the country.

The HTSSCN exists to fill the demand skills gap in Nigeria’s tourism and hospitality occupational trades.