***As NIHOTOUR Confers Fellowship on Minister
The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa (Esq.), has called for a new era of professionalism, standardization, and global competitiveness in Nigeria’s tourism and hospitality sector as she formally backed the nationwide registration and certification initiative launched by the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR).
The Minister made the remarks on Thursday during the launch of NIHOTOUR’s nationwide registration, induction, and professional practice certification exercise for practitioners, operators, and institutions across Nigeria’s hospitality, tourism, and creative economy ecosystem.
At the event, the Director-General of NIHOTOUR, Abisoye Fagade, conferred on Musawa the prestigious fellowship of the institute in recognition of her leadership and contributions to the development of Nigeria’s tourism and hospitality industry.
Fagade said the honour is reserved for individuals who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to raising standards, ethics, and professionalism in the sector, noting that the initiative marks a major step toward restructuring and strengthening the industry.
Speaking after receiving the recognition, Musawa described the exercise as a strategic national intervention aimed at building structure, enforcing standards, eliminating quackery, and creating a reliable database of tourism and hospitality practitioners in Nigeria.
In a statement by her special adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Nneka Ikem Anibeze the minister was quoted to have indicated that the initiative signals the beginning of a new phase in the sector’s development, one that will enhance accountability, professionalism, and Nigeria’s global competitiveness.
“This marks the beginning of a new era of professionalism, accountability, standardization and global competitiveness for the sector,” she said.
The Minister stressed that tourism and hospitality remain one of the fastest-growing sectors globally, capable of generating employment, boosting foreign exchange earnings, and strengthening cultural diplomacy.
She noted that Nigeria possesses rich cultural diversity, heritage assets, and creative talent that can position the country as a leading tourism destination in Africa and beyond, but emphasized that sustainable growth can only be achieved through structure and skilled manpower.
Musawa further highlighted that the NIHOTOUR Establishment Act has reinforced the institute’s mandate as a regulatory and training body responsible for setting standards in hospitality, tourism, and travel practice nationwide.
She urged stakeholders across the value chain to embrace the certification process as a necessary step toward professional growth, credibility, and national development, while congratulating newly inducted professionals and urging them to uphold integrity and innovation.
Also speaking at the event, NIHOTOUR Director-General Abisoye Fagade reiterated that the registration and certification drive is designed to restore dignity to the profession and ensure that practitioners meet internationally recognized standards of competence and ethics.
“Our goal is to ensure that every practitioner in hospitality, tourism, and travel meets internationally recognized standards of competence and ethics,” he said.
The event also featured the formal induction of professionals and the presentation of certificates, marking a significant milestone in Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to reform and reposition the tourism and hospitality sector.
