The Federal and State Governments have been called to actively support private sector initiatives aimed at fostering domestic tourism in the country.
He specifically mentioned the positive impact created by projects such as Naija7Wonders, Nigeria Tourism Lovers, Goge Africa and Naija Explorers, which have been at the forefront of driving domestic tourism growth, with states like Cross River, Osun, Lagos, Akwa Ibom and Ekiti actively participating.
“The federal government should seize the opportunity to promote the country as a tourist destination. He criticized the allocation of government funds to events that do not bring in any tourists either from abroad or Nigeria and ignored those that have proved to contribute to tourism growth. “Prioritizing support for globally recognized events like Afro Nation, Detty December, AFRIMA, and Experience by House on the Rock is necessary to achieve tourism goals using music.
Furthermore, he suggested leveraging religious tourism through events such as the Osun Osogbo festival, Synagogue of Church All Nations events along mega-churches that draw visitors. He also proposed promoting cultural events like the Eyo Festival, New Yam Festival, Bini Igue Festival, Argungu Fish Festival, and Durbar Festivals. Carnival Calabar he said is successful because it is contemporary and has a mass appeal globally.