With the Calabar carnival coming up in few weeks, Gov Bassey Otu of Cross River state has doled out financial grants to hospitality industry to boost their operations so that they could provide comely services to fun-lovers who would troop into the state for the annual fiesta.

Speaking in Calabar during the grant award presentation ceremony, Tuesday, the Managing Director of the State Tourism Bureau, Mr Ekpenyong Ojoi, who represented the governor, said the funds were meant to help hotel managers put vital facilities in place especially in areas of beddings, electricity and general aesthetics.

“The governor is demonstrating his commitment to the hospitality industry with this gesture and I can assure you that the state government is poised to take tourism to the next level. The presentation of these grants today is a statement of commitment.

“We cannot talk of tourism without hotels. By next year, this commitment will be replicated in the central and the northern senatorial districts. The number of hotels captured this period is only ten but plans are underway to extend it to all others,” Ojoi stated.

Ojoi, who charged beneficiaries to use the grants judiciously, pledged the resolve of government to make this year’s carnival one of the best in its history, adding “tourism, as we know, belongs to the private sector, but government is all out to create the enabling environment for it to thrive.”

In his brief remarks, Special Adviser to the Governor on General Duties, Barr Ekpenyong Akiba, said “His Excellency is matching his campaign promises with action now. He is taking steps to revamp all moribund sectors and I tell you, very soon, Cross River will regain its lost glory.”

Charles Ogar, Chairman of the Hotel Association in the state, said in his remarks that with gesture, Governor Otu was giving hope to a hopeless situation of the hospitality industry, and therefore promised the resolve of his association to offer best services to tourists and fun lovers during the festive period and beyond.

Blueprint in Calabar reports that the sum of N1 million was given to each of the 10 benefiting hotels.

The beneficiaries include Pyramid Hotels, Diamond Crew Hotel, Le Chateau, Royal Bits, Channels View and Global Dreams Hotels. Others were Tourist Caste and Suits, Formula Executive, Calcom Hotel and Ahkira Lodge.