NANTA warns of rising travel losses as thousands of Nigerians lose money in failed visa bids, while tourism potential in eastern Nigeria remains untapped
NANTA warns against travel losses as more Nigerians continue to lose vast amounts of money while pursuing opportunities abroad without success.
This warning came from the Vice President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) Eastern Zone, Ehiogie Hope, during a press briefing held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Speaking ahead of the 2025 Eastern Travel Market, scheduled to take place from 27th to 30th August in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Hope expressed deep concern over the alarming number of Nigerians who invest their hard-earned income in visa applications but receive no approval in return.
While many focus on the cost of successful visa applications, Hope pointed out a silent crisis. Thousands of would-be travellers spend significant amounts without any result, he noted, yet they remain uncounted in the official statistics.
“The fact is that those who applied for visas but could not succeed are not calculated as part of the ecosystem. That money has been wasted,” he said.
He revealed that some countries demand as much as \$300,000 from Nigerians as part of the visa process, without any guarantee of approval. Despite the losses, these failed journeys are largely ignored in public discourse.
Hope also used the occasion to highlight the importance of the upcoming Eastern Travel Market 2025, themed ‘Culture Unveiled’. The event aims to showcase the tourism opportunities within Nigeria’s eastern states and attract global attention to a region rich in heritage but low in visibility.
He announced that over 1,000 travel professionals and enthusiasts from outside Nigeria are expected to attend the Uyo event. Their visit will provide an opportunity to explore a region with untapped tourism resources and introduce new prospects for investment.
The NANTA vice president shared an optimistic projection for the sector, noting that tourism-related businesses in the Eastern zone could attract over $12 million by 2026. This, he said, would mark a major leap from the $4 million generated in 2024.
He lamented that the Eastern tourism market has not reached its potential due to limited promotion and a lack of enabling infrastructure. “We have not created the environment.
We don’t have visibility,” Hope remarked, calling on stakeholders to prioritise tourism development to reverse the current economic losses.
With the Eastern Travel Market on the horizon, NANTA is looking to turn attention inward, encouraging Nigerians to explore and invest in domestic tourism rather than gamble on uncertain travel dreams abroad.
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