August 05, (THEWILL) – The newly elected Executive of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN) has been assured of greater cooperation to move the association to a higher level.
The Director-General of National Council for Arts and Culture, Otunba Olusegun Runsewe, gave the assurance in Abuja when the newly elected executive of the Federation paid him a courtesy call in his office.
Describing the NCAC as a dependable ally in the movement to change the narratives in the arts and culture sector, Runsewe said the tourism and arts/culture sectors were like Siamese twins and many people had yet to understand the relationship between both of them, which he likened to production and marketing outfits where “arts/culture produces the content, while tourism markets and sustains the system.” According to him, this explains why culture and tourism are inseparable.
He, however, decried the high level of insecurity in the country and advised the Federal Government to partner with FTAN in the area of monitoring and screening of various hotels, which often serve as hiding places for criminals.
He reiterated the need for a higher level of participation by stakeholders and practitioners in the sector, which is the highest employer of labour in the country.
Runsewe assured the executives of FTAN that NCAC woukd allocate an office space for the federation when the NCAC Cultural village becomes fully operational.
Earlier in his address, the president of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria, Nkerewem Onung, said the newly elected Executive had embarked on the courtesy visit to thank the DG for the fatherly and advisory role he played before and after the election that produced the newly elected officials.
Onung, who congratulated Runsewe on his reappointment by President Muhammadu Buhari, described the DG as a statesman, patriotic Nigerian and an icon of the culture and tourism sectors whose role has changed the narrative in both sectors since he assumed office.
The FTAN president said the federation was established in 1997 as the umbrella body to represent all tourism-related related groups in the country and to function as the mouthpiece of private investors in the tourism sector.
Onung stressed that the visit was also aimed at strengthening the already existing relationship between private investors in the culture and tourism sectors and the NCAC, as well as to seek NCAC’s support and assistance in the area of logistics to enable the federation carry out its responsibilities.
Also speaking, the first vice president of the FTAN, Badaki Aliu, thanked Runsewe for the high level of hospitality accorded them and expressed optimism that the newly elected executive would increase its level of partnership with the NCAC in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the federation.
About the Author
Janefrances Ebere Chibuzor is a Tourism Writer at THEWILL
