Scorecard: NIHOTOUR DG, Kangiwa receives knocks as he presents “false” training claims, by Justina Okpanku

Tourism industry operators in the country have expressed their dissatisfaction concerning the lingering poor tourism education in the country following the announcement recently by the National Institute for Tourism and Hospitality (NIHOTOUR).

NIHOTOUR is the apex tourism training institute in the country.

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NIHOTOUR was established in 1987 following a tripartite agreement involving Nigeria, the United Nations Development Programme ( UNDP), and the International Labour Organisation in order to provide capacity building for the tourism and hospitality industry.

At present, NIHOTOUR stated that they have successfully trained 80,000 people within four years. They highlighted that NIHOTOUR has established more campuses across the country, from 10 to 14.

Some operators who critically took a hard look at it rightly pointed out that there’s no correlation between the claim and existing poor standards in the restaurants and bars across the country, saying that there’s need for change of leadership at NIHOTOUR.

Obviously, they are not happy as NIHOTOUR has not been concentrating practically on executing NIHOTOUR policies through training and education despite the hundreds of hours of work, meetings, and creativity of it’s officials.

It is gathered that the tenure of the current Director General of the NIHOTOUR, Mr. Nura Sani Kangiwa will expire this month (August 2024).

A source said it is possible that Kangiwa would desire to be reappointed for another four years, having listed the “successes” in his responsibility.

He may have thought he has given NIHOTOUR a bounce and perhaps wants to sustain the bounce.

The source however regretted that tourism insiders are aware of the intense lobbying where Tourism Minister, Ms Lola Ade-John, who is the supervisory minister of NIHOTOUR, is allegedly rooting for Kangiwa’s return even though clearly he doesn’t deserve another tenure. Does Kangiwa has a chance of being reappointed?

A travel agent, Joy Umoh, said it would be unwelcome. “I think the tourism minister is wrong if it’s true she’s pushing for Nura Kangiwa’s second term. Madam Lola (Ade-John) is relatively new having worked as Tourism minister for just 4 months or so (she was feeling ill and so travelled out of the country for several months shortly after her appointment in June 2023). Could it be because Kangiwa gave the minister an office space at NIHOTOUR office in Abuja? Kangiwa also accompanied the tourism minister to her first foreign trip. We know about the favours, but they are not enough to sideline performance and kill accountability. By the way, what’s that special thing Kangiwa did? What value did he add to tourism education? It is high time President Tinubu begin to look in and checkmate these tourism parastatals (NIHOTOUR and the National Tourism Development Authority, formerly NTDC) and their DGs who are just there drawing salaries and living large. It will be sad if Kangiwa is returned for another controversial tenure. He may have been completing a 4 – year tenure of gross incompetence,” she noted. Adding: ” This is partly why Nigeria Tourism is backwards… We need to change our story.” Generally, tourism
operators in the country frowned at the claim by NIHOTOUR that they trained 80, 000 people in four years. Everyone is saying the same thing, “Where’s the figure from? Is the figure accurate? One of them said ” Kangiwa should be able to give statistics. Data is gold. Training of 80, 000 people only exists in our heads.” Hotels are the most important target group for NIHOTOUR. But hotels across the country hardly look to NIHOTOUR when they think training as some of them said they don’t have NIHOTOUR time.

Some of the hotels, particularly the hotel chains in Nigeria, have their own training schools. Others send their staff members abroad for training in hospitality.

A source in Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, said the Hilton management has a training centre where they continuously train their staff no matter how long they have been with the hotel. He added that “I doubt NIHOTOUR has called for meeting with Hilton introducing their curriculum/ training programmes. Well, I don’t think it will be positive as some of us think NIHOTOUR’s teachers are not abreast of new techniques and best practices in the service industry. Most of them are not conversant with what is required.”

The tourism institute (NIHOTOUR) has the responsibility of providing training for hotel workers, travel and tour companies, as well as tourism-reliant organisations.

Not a few said they expected NIHOTOUR’s communications to be much more better than before Kangiwa came. A ticketing officer of an Abuja-based DevineGlory Travels, John Musa said he didn’t believe their story.

“Would they (NIHOTOUR) be publishing fake news and admitting ghosts students? The public ought to be given the data and statistics of the real students/trainees who have passed through NIHOTOUR’S training.”

Another tourism operator who said NIHOTOUR is not so solid said: “I was appalled to read the story on Kangiwa’s scorecard. I think he wants to continue to fund his pet project, NSK Venture, in Argungu, Kebbi State and the Nigeria Polo Federation (he’s the current president).

Meanwhile, our service industry is shamelessly abused.” He continued, ” For those of us in the hospitality industry, we know there’s no training for most people working in the restaurants and bars across the country. I don’t think getting some women together and teaching them how to prepare chin-chin and doughnuts is the core objective of establishing NIHOTOUR. Kangiwa’s scorecard is an eloquent tale of a sad story because NIHOTOUR is not adding value.”

However, other tourism industry stakeholders have beamed with joy at Kangiwa’s consistency with NIHOTOUR Gastronomy Festival, a move which is new to the “sleepy “tourism institute before his appointment in 2020. A staff of NIHOTOUR who asked for anonymity said NIHOTOUR has succeeded in creating awareness of the institute. “Nura (Kangiwa ) should be praised for organising the gastronomy festival in Abuja in three consecutive times. You know the embassies in Nigeria are interested in what we are doing now.”

Regardless, a Warri, Delta State-based hotel owner, Mr. Ben Ihama maintained that the NIHOTOUR Gastronomy Festival has not raised the bar on the affairs of NIHOTOUR. ” In truth, the popularity of Nigeria cuisine is going down with Kangiwa at the helm of affairs of the hospitality institute. Local delicacies, food and drinks such as Ugba, (also known as African salad), Edikang Ikong, Tuwo Masara, Alibo, and Kunu, which fared better as they were accepted and enjoyed by people from the different tribes across the country. Some of ‘yummy yummy’ delicacies were even exported. That made people happy.”

Ihama also stressed that NIHOTOUR Gastronomy festival is a brilliant idea but it failed ‘patriotic’ test because the festival was hijacked by the various embassies that got involved and positioned their own food and culture prominently. Nigeria cuisine took a backseat.

“Sadly, Kangiwa was busy celebrating Senegal Jollof and Chinese cuisine during his highly extravagant gastronomy festival sought after by the various embassies in Nigeria seeking to promote their own culture, food and tourism to their countries. So, the festival hardly solved the problem of low awareness of our Nigerian food.” According to him, ” I was worried when I saw how wasteful Kangiwa has been running his NIHOTOUR’s Gastronomy. Being a government-owned institute doesn’t mean you cannot promote Nigerian cuisine from around the six geo-political zones and still make money for NIHOTOUR. We used to see effort in the past geared at promoting Nigerian food to be like Chinese cuisine. Now Kangiwa’s NIHOTOUR has succeeded in giving envoys in Abuja the platform to outshine Nigeria cuisine. People are yet to ask Kangiwa what the NIHOTOUR Gastronomy achieved after the various outings despite the huge sum committed in organising them.

In the same vein, a tourism operator- turned- banker, Michael Abia, frowned at the increasing number of NIHOTOUR’s campuses. He regretted that the standard of tourism education is still very poor. “I understand NIHOTOUR has more campuses now. The funds would have been committed to maintaining the existing campuses. (Frowning and pointing to a direction) Look at NIHOTOUR flagship, Lagos Zonal Campus, NIHOTOUR on your way to Yaba from Fadeyi bridge, you won’t see any seriousness. I think the rating of NIHOTOUR has not changed over the years. One begins to wonder where NIHOTOUR’s huge budget is going to? They are after estacode-pocketing and pursuit of personal agenda of building mosque. Monkey dey work Baboon dey chop. Let’s not be fooled.”
It is perhaps this reason the call for change in NIHOTOUR is louder now. People apparently want to see meaningful development in the tourism industry.