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| The Chairman of the Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba (SAN), discussing with the President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies, NANTA, Mr Bernard Bankole, aftera courtesy visit at the Commission’s Headquarters in Port Harcourt |
Chairman,
Board of Directors of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Senator Ndoma
Egba has promised to chair and present the lead paper at the 42nd
Annual General Meeting of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies
(NANTA), slated for Port-Harcourt in March.
Also
in same framework, the presidency through Mr. Femi Adeshina, the Special
Adviser Media to President Muhammadu Buhari has thumbed up the game changing
initiatives of NANTA to rid the travel trade business of corrupt practitioners,
assuring that the federal government will partner with NANTA to create the
necessary enabling environment to drive the down-stream of the aviation sector
as major player to the sustainable economic and social development of Nigeria.
To
Director-General, National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) Otunba Segun
Runsewe, NANTA will be rebranded to give new meanings the culture as a business
and enabler of rural development.
Senator
Ndoma Egba who received NANTA president and his entourage at NDDC head office
in Port-Harcourt last week, promised not only to attend the conference with a
theme “symbiotic relationship of Aviation and Tourism - A key to economic sustainability”
but also partner with NANTA to drive rural cultural tourism in the Niger Delta
areas.
He
expressed immense joy and happiness at NANTA visit and acknowledged that NDDC
has the mandate to grow rural tourism and help change the ugly narratives of Niger
delta people whose history, and disposition to hospitality had been distorted
through many years of unexplainable restiveness and economic dislocation.
“At
NDDC, we want to create militant force of aggressive development, economic
empowerment and showcase a culture of hospitality, tourism, arts and crafts
noted with hospitable people of Niger delta areas” the senator added, noting
“we want to see our food, fashion, arts and crafts, unique culture dances
exported to the world which in the long run, will help attract investments into
our delta areas and also change the sad story of our people mismanaged by
unseen forces.
He
called on NANTA president to come back with proposals on how NDDC can partner
with NANTA to open up Niger delta rural areas to tourism economy. Earlier,
NANTA president, Bankole Bernard has informed the NDDC chairman of the notable
and game changing strides at NDDC since he became chairman and invited him to
share his experience with NANTA members during their conference to held in
Port-Harcourt in March.
According
to NANTA president, Senator Egba apart from been found worthy to share his
tourism thoughts with top grade aviators, ministers and destination managers,
he (Senator Egba) will also join in unveiling NANTA anti corruption and fraud
bursting practitioner identification card.
Bernard
lamented the negative narratives about Niger delta areas and Port-Harcourt in
particular, noting that such stories are exaggerated and vented to rubbish the
huge culture and tourism endowments of the people and therefore urged NDDC to
partner and support NANTA as destination marketers to tell the real story of
the region.
Meanwhile,
the Presidency has also assured to support NANTA in all its progressive
endeavour, particularly in projecting the good image of Nigeria as a safe place
to invest in tourism and aviation business in Africa. Femi Adeshina who
received NANTA president and his delegation at the villa, assured NANTA that President
Buhari will be briefed about the association’s effort to check fraud in travel
trade business in Nigeria and the readiness of the Presidency to encourage the ease
of doing business in the downstream sector of the aviation industry.
In
same vein, NCAC boss, Otunba Segun Runsewe expressed his agency’s readiness to
change the entire conference outlook of NANTA gathering in Port-Harcourt,
noting that the culture and tourism industry in Nigeria needs an association
like NANTA to occupy the private sector tourism space.
“NCAC
will be in Port-Harcourt and we shall unveil a new template of Nigeria’s
culture industry never seen before”. He told his visitors in Abuja.
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