Tourism professional and hospitality entrepreneur, Mrs. Toyin Odugbesan, has lamented the impacts of insecurity on the tourism sector, calling on President Bola Tinubu led Federal Government to tackle the menace plaguing the country.

Odugbesan, who has been in the tourism sector and hospitality business for over 15 years, made the call in an interview with The Guardian, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

She said: “The impact of insecurity on tourism is huge because security is one of the major key factors that thrives tourism. We can chart the way forward for tourism in Nigeria but if people feel that Nigeria is not secure or even some certain states are not secure, it would discourage people from coming to Nigeria. This is why we implore this administration to fix the issues of insecurity by finding a lasting solution to this menace in our country.”

Odugbesan however applauded the government for making the Federal Ministry for Tourism as a standalone, and the creation of Art, Culture and Creative Economy. “Nonetheless, the public-private- partnership model is a way to go. Most of our tourist destinations are moribund. I will urge the government to pay more attention to tourism because of its huge potential.

Tourism can be used as a tool for us to be able to grow the economy, it will create jobs, enhance foreign investment as it happens in countries like the United Arab Emirate , Dubai and others. To achieve this, we need to bring the private sector into the tourism industry. We need them to be able to partner with the government and run it. The government really has no business in doing business but most of our destinations are actually government owned but we need to bring the private sector to collaborate for us to be able to get desired results.”

The entrepreneur also urged the Minister of Tourism on effectiveness and engagement of stakeholders in the sector.