Nigeria, SA call on African countries to develop tourism by boosting collaboration, air connectivity

Nigeria’s and South Africa’s senior government officials have urged African countries to boost collaboration, rather than compete with one another, and work together to improve air connectivity, which would in turn boost tourism and economic growth.
Speaking during the recent African Tourism Ministers Dialogue in South Africa’s port city of Durban, the country’s Minister of Tourism, Patricia de Lille, noted that “the rest of the world is poised to make travel more accessible, and essential source markets like China and India are set to increase; we must partner to make it easier to travel to and in Africa.” Therefore, de Lille urged African tourism ministers to find concrete solutions — including by using technological advances like digital booking platforms, biometric security systems, and sustainable aviation fuels — to create opportunities to increase air connectivity in Africa. “It is simply that we want more tourists to travel and to make it easier for tourists to travel on the African continent,” she added.
De Lille’s words were echoed by Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) Director General, Folorunsho Coker, who has called for collaboration among the member countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to develop the tourism potential of the subregion. Speaking during a meeting of experts and stakeholders of the private tourism industry that is held in Abuja this week, Coker has also called for the streamlining of ECOWAS policies on tourism that would place West Africa in prime position to compete with other regions. “It’s the season to collaborate not to compete,” he said, adding that: “It’s in the spirit of collaboration that we will grow pan-African tourism.”