LASG, GOGE AFRICA COMMENCE TRAINING OF RESIDENTS IN TOURISM BUSINESS
As a way of empowering Nigerian youths in the tourism business, Lagos State Government in partnership with Goge Africa, has commenced a four-day free training programme for tourism enthusiasts in Lagos State.
The four-day training programme, which commenced on Monday at the Leola Hotel, Maryland, is also supported by Sterling Bank, National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) and Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) among others.
Addressing the trainees during the opening session of the workshop, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mr. Solomon Bonu, urged the beneficiaries of the programme to leverage the potentials in the tourism industry in Lagos State, saying that the development portends great opportunity for them.
He also advised the beneficiaries of the programme to take advantage of the tourism funds provided by the State Government to assist practitioners in the tourism and hospitality establishments across the State.
While promising that the government will continue to support and encourage capacity development in the area of tourism as conceptualised in the T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda, Bonu acknowledged the efforts of Goge Africa in transferring knowledge on tourism development to youths and aspiring entrepreneurs.
The Managing Director of Goge Africa, Mrs. Nneka Isaac-Moses said, “The initiative is in line with our mission to build capacity for 1,000 tourism practitioners by 2025. The tourism industry worldwide is in need of reinvigoration following new travel regulations necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, there is no better time to upscale human capacity in line with global best practice in the tourism industry worldwide than now”.
“The Goge Africa tourism training is designed to support capacity building in the tourism and hospitality industry to restore the confidence of the travel community. This will facilitate the revitalisation of the industry for financial viability. In consideration of the economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided to provide some of our training to industry practitioners and new entrants at no financial cost”, she added.
The Divisional Head, Retail and Consumer Banking, Sterling Bank, Mr. Shina Atilola, advised the participants to find their niche and be different in using their strength to project the Nigerian tourism sector to the outside world.
He maintained that the fundamental challenge to tourism development in Nigeria is the lack of pride in what actually belongs to Nigerians, stressing that there is nothing in other countries that is not present here in Nigeria.
The participants were trained in areas such as Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism, Tour Packaging, Characteristics of a Successful Tour Guide, Social Media and Tour marketing, Marketing and Sales of Tourism Products for Beginners, Introduction to Taxation for Entrepreneurs, Financial Literacy and Scaling Tourism Business in a Pandemic.
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