October 05, (THEWILL) – The Minister of Tourism, Lola Ade-John, has promised to collaborate with members of the Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP) in the quest to promote Nigeria’s tourist sites and landmarks, including its diverse cultural heritage. Speaking when she received the executive members of NATOP led by its President, Mrs. Bolaji Mustapha, on Thursday, in Abuja, the Minister expressed her excitement at the focal intention of the Nigerian tour trade practitioners to visit the entire stretch of the country’s vast landscape, to process, understudy, package and promote the various tourism, hospitality, festivals and heritage offerings associated with the Nigerian people to the world and Nigerians in particular.
“We shall partner together, and I do assure you of my ministry’s support and encouragement. Going forward, we shall endeavour to invite and carry your association along in whatever we are going to do. We need you to furnish us with a list of your accredited members and when we are going to present the tourism policy, which we think we need to review, we shall invite NATOP to look at it and further add value to the document,” she said.
On funds to support NATOP’s activities and facilitating efforts to showcase Nigeria at the World Travel Market (WTM), the Minister said the ministry is working around the tourism budget which currently cannot help drive the many pending tourism projects of the ministry and indeed, may impact the ministry’.
