The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has called for a 'Marshall Plan' to aid the recovery of the Travel and Tourism Sector in Africa, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic that has hit the sector very hard.
''It is imperative for the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) to support Africa with a 'Marshall Plan' of sorts, in terms of technical assistance, capacity building and grants,''
The African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Union Commission (AUC) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) have jointly called for African countries to strengthen their economic integration. They made this call at the recent launch of the Africa Regional Integration Index 2019 (ARII 2019). This is the second such index to be produced, the first being ARII 2016.
As the sector faces up to an unprecedented challenge, the World Committee on Tourism Ethics (a subsidiary of the World Tourism Organization) has analysed the steps being taken by businesses and trade associations to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. Studying the actions taken by Private Sector Commitment to the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism (GCET) in 25 countries, the research revealed that, in spite of staff furloughs, employers across the sector are stepping up their support for workers and for communities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a 22% fall in international tourist arrivals during the first quarter of 2020, the latest data from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) shows. According to the United Nations specialized agency, the crisis could lead to an annual decline of between 60% and 80% when compared with 2019 figures. This places millions of livelihoods at risk and threatens to roll back progress made in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Federal Government of Nigeria has issued a travel ban on 13 countries in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19 (coronavirus). The Secretary to the Government of the Federation Boss Mustapha made the announcement at a media briefing on Wednesday, Chronicle reports.
United States of America, through its consulate in Lagos, has expressed its readiness to partner Osun Government to develop the state’s tourism sector.
US Consular General, Ms Claire Pierangelo, said this on 11th March 2020 when she and her team visited the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) certified Osun Osogbo Groove situated in the heart of the state capital.
From June, 2020, when the Coronavirus scourge must have abated, the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) will become operational, making the continent the world’s largest free trade area involving 55 countries with a population of 1.27 billion people, and a combined GDP of $2.6 trillion. The development is expected to increase trade among African countries that is currently put at a lowly 16 per cent.
The efforts to improve the tourism sector in Plateau State have received a boost as the State Governor, Simon Lalong has concluded plan to acquire two Rhinos from Kenya to increase the number of animals in the Jos Wild Life Park. It would be recalled that the Governor had been on a peer review tour of Kenya in the last one week to seek areas of collaborations in agriculture, tourism, entertainment, human capital development as well as tea and flower production.
