The Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria (FTAN), the umbrella for all private sector tourism bodies in Nigeria, has called on the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to implement the FCT tourism master plan.
The president of FTAN, Alhaji Rabo Saleh, who made the call in Abuja, noted that the full implementation of the master plan would make the FCT a destination of choice in the tourism industry.
He stressed the need to involve the private sector in efforts to actualise a speedy economic recovery plan.
Saleh revealed that 80 per cent of all tourism and tourism-related businesses that provided over 30,000 jobs in the FCT were private-sector driven, and noted that the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic left the world economy in a devastated state, hence the need for diversification.
He, therefore, urged the FCTA to initiate a public, private sector collaboration to develop domestic tourism sites like the Jabi Lake, parks, and Katampe Hills, aimed at promoting tourism in the territory.
The FCT Minister of State, Dr. Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu, while responding, acknowledged the potential of the tourism sector in the area of job creation.
According to a statement by Mr Austine Elemue, the minister’s media aide, she was represented by her Senior Special Assistant on Administration and Strategy, Prof. Muhammad Usman.
She informed members of the association that the Abuja master plan was not cast in stone, stressing the need to review the FCT tourism master plan.
Dr Ramatu also noted that the nation’s projected population by 2050 would be about 450 million people, adding that with such a huge population, it is important that all sectors are active in order to avoid a crisis.
