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WTM 2024: Tourism Minister Assures FG’s Support for NANTA
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Nigeria’s Minister of Tourism Trade and Development, Mrs Lola Ade-John, has said that government will mobilize the country to support NANTA’s appearance at the world most famous tourism and travel trade exposition, the World Travel Market (WTM) in London, come November.
The Minister, who was visibly excited about the selfless determination and commitment of the private sector travel trade professional’s body to market and promote Nigeria, noted that NANTA’s patriotic push and desire to fly the flag of Nigerian cultural tourism values and offerings deserves the support of all Nigerians, particularly the state governments.
To add flip to government intervention and support, the minister stated that the ministries of culture and tourism recently joined hands together to approach all 36 state governments to join the advocacy campaign to showcase Nigeria’s rich cultural tourism resources to the world.
“We are upbeat about supporting your association and looking forward to being at the WTM. NANTA has shown capacity and technical knowhow to stay ahead of this noble gesture, and as government, the minister of culture, and myself have met and agreed to support institutions such as yours to project this campaign which is part of the government intention to provide direction for the private sector to create jobs and gain knowledge of how to welcome and satisfy visitors to Nigeria” she informed.
The minister further explained that she needs the support of NANTA and the organised Federation of Tourism Association of Nigeria to turn around the fortunes of tourism in Nigeria.
“By mid-September, we shall unveil the tourism policy, listen to the private sector operational ecosystem, discuss data and statistics ethos which will help us plan, motivate, and inspire a reward ecosystem for private sector visibility and ownership of the sector. Our noble role is to offer guidance and assistance where necessary and ensure discipline so as to mobilize the informal sector and formal economy to improve our services, products, and offerings.” She added
The minister prayed for sanity and collaboration in the industry, worried that the extreme bickering and animosity among practitioners are distractive and could ambush the progressive efforts both in the public and private sectors to have an organised bankable cultural tourism economy.
“I will work hard to enthrone harmony and togetherness. I don’t like to pull any official pressure to just show I am the minister of tourism. I would like to be out there, working than sitting down here and receiving visitors and talking. We must work together, and I must confess that the media, even though critical of our activities, are veritable partners. We shall work with the Nigerian tourism media, this is not negotiable, but they must be patient with us, though not too silent.” She stated
On visa issue, the minister said the issue is receiving attention from the interior minister, and very soon, the change will be visible. She also assured that Nigeria would return to winning ways soon but urged all Nigerians to put their hands behind the efforts by the government to create an atmosphere that is acceptable and welcoming to both Nigerians and the visitors.
“I believe in the power of our domestic tourism, getting Nigerians to love Nigeria, visit each other and appreciate our rich sociocultural diversity. NANTA is big and huge, and I am sure together, we can make Nigerian culture and tourism trade great and very attractive,” the Minister enthused.
Speaking earlier, NANTA President, Mr. Yinka Folami, who led the association’s executive members, which included Immediate Past President, Mrs Susan Akporiaye, First Deputy President Pastor Chinyere Umeasiegbu, Financial Secretary, Yinka Ladipo, Vice President, Abuja Zone, Mrs Uloma Ibiwari Kamebonta, Internal Auditor, Johnson Ugochukwu and Stanley Digi, Chief Administrative Officer, informed and asurred the minister that NANTA is Nigerian cultural tourism centric and would do its best to be good ambassadors of the country within and outside our shores.
He noted that the association has taken it upon itself to market and promote Nigeria at the World Travel Market ( WTM) in London, a project the association has done successfully in the past two years, committing huge funds and energy.
“It is a heavy burden for us, but we felt we must help our country in times of need to help tell the stories of our rich cultural and historical diversities, and we have no regret doing it because we believe in the Nigerian Project” he explained, adding that NANTA expects the government to support the drive to bring Nigerian cultural tourism to the market place of global tourism and travel business.
“We honestly received some encouragement from NTDA and NCAC in the past. But we want to have a bigger Nigerian project at WTM and having done it successfully in the past two years, with the Nigerian students community in the United Kingdom turning out to support our initiative, we wish that government should be part of the marketing and promotion movement which would help attract not only visitors traffic but also critical investment to the country,” NANTA president stressed.
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Osun Guber Election: I’ll Call Trump If Anything Goes Wrong, Davido Warns
Afrobeats music singer, David Adeleke aka Davido, has said he will seek the intervention of United States President, Donald Trump, if anything goes wrong during the forthcoming Osun State governorship election.
The singer made the statement during a livestream hosted by content creator Carter Efe, where he discussed his interest in politics and his concerns about the conduct of elections in Nigeria.
Davido said he would consider joining politics when he is convinced that the country’s electoral system is transparent and allows voters to freely choose their leaders.
According to him, he is confident of emerging victorious in an election that is conducted fairly.
He said the lack of transparency remains one of the reasons he has not ventured into politics despite his interest.
“Until there’s transparency, then I can go ahead with politics because nobody can beat me in any election,” he said.
Davido added that he would be confident of winning if Nigerians were allowed to vote freely and have their votes properly counted.
He also expressed concern about the upcoming Osun governorship election, saying he was waiting to see how the exercise would be conducted.
“I want to see what they are going to do in Osun. We are waiting,” he said.
The singer then disclosed that he would reach out to Trump if he became dissatisfied with the electoral process in Osun.
Davido said he would tag and call the US president and, if necessary, take his concerns to the White House.
“I’ll tag Trump, I’ll call Trump, everybody. If they still don’t see anything, I’ll go in front of the White House and say, ‘Help us,’”
“Trump will just say, ‘I think there’s a Nigerian artiste sending me a message. Don’t worry, my message will be delivered.’he said.
He stressed that his threat should not be dismissed as a joke, adding that he expected his concerns to reach the US president.
Davido concluded by calling on those involved in the electoral process to allow the people of Osun State to freely determine their next governor.
“Leave Osun alone oo, leave it,” he said.
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Food for Living: Love What You Do (Pt. 1)
By Henry Ukazu
Destiny Friends,
The word ‘love’ is very significant. This is because of its descriptive power towDearards an action or feeling directed at someone or something. However, love means many things to many people, depending on one’s side of the divide.
Love is a beautiful thing. It is a beautiful experience and feeling when one gets it right. It breaks the heart when one loves someone and he/she is not loved back. Trust me, it really hits differently when one is loved in the manner they wished to be loved.
Love cuts all barriers of life, whether we are talking about purpose, health, academic, spirituality, finance, relationships, family, and career/vocation.
Let’s take a minute to dwell on the concepts of love as it relates to loving what one does.
Purpose:
Our purpose in life is much more important than our career. It’s instructive to note your profession is what you are trained to do as an attorney, doctor, engineer, accountant; your vocation is what one is paid to do as 9-5 work or skill work; but your ministry is your calling, that’s where you find your passion, your gift/talent. Our focus in life is to align our vocation, profession and ministry together.
Health:
If we love ourselves, we’ll pay attention to our health and that entails what we eat, how we exercise, and how we pay attention to our body. When we love our health, we’ll pay attention to what we do because our health will ultimately affect all we do.
Academic:
Loving what we do also affects our academics. It’s sad to see students who read majors they have no interest in just because of the job market. If one studies a major they don’t like, it will have an impact in their personal and professional lives. Imagine reading law when one’s interest is in accountancy, engineering or even Mass communication. The level of impact and fulfilment one gets studying a major they like is different from the impact they will deliver if they one don’t like the major. So, it’s advisable for one to study a major they have a strong interest in.
Spirituality:
Our spirituality plays an important role in what we do. We can’t succeed in life without the support of God. According to Evangelist Ebuka Obi, behind every successful man, there’s a spirit working for him. I totally agree with this saying because when you love what you do, the universe has a way of coming close and conspiring to make you succeed because it’s in alignment with God’s master plan and purpose for your life.
Finance
When we love what we do, it will have an influence on our finances especially when we are good at what we do. Everyone likes the best person who can do a job and that even entails paying for a premium service. One of the reasons why most people are poor is simply because they are not solving problems, even though they are solving problems, they are not solving the right problem, or they are not solving the right problem for the right people at the right places and time.
Relationships
To succeed in life, we must pay attention to our relationships because our relationships determine our network which ultimately determines our net worth. Loving what one does also entails being intentional in the people they let into their lives.
Family,
Family is the highest influence in a child’s life. When there is love in the family, the child will learn to love other people when they go outside. According to Mr. Okechukwu Ukazu, you can choose your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, and best friend, but you can’t choose your family. We don’t have control over who becomes our family either as parents or siblings because that’s how God designed it. Do you see why family is everything?
Career/vocation
Succeeding in life entails working in a profession or vocation we like. When we like what we are doing, and what we are doing like us, we shall be successful. It’s sad to see people working in jobs they don’t like just to pay the bills. It’s instructive to note that at creation God grants us talents and gifts to succeed in life, but because of the challenges of life, some of us now settle for something else. This is why some people are victims of defective success because as they climb the corporate ladder, one day, they will realize that they have gotten to the top only to realize they were climbing the wrong ladder of success.
Have you ever wondered why some people feel frustrated and depressed in life despite having resources at their disposal? It’s simply because they don’t like what they are doing. Loving what you do has a strong correlation to one’s physical and psychological and mental success in life.
In conclusion, to succeed, endeavor to love what you do.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design, Unleash Your Destiny and The Six Pillars of Succes . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
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Glo Records Largest Internet Subscriber Growth in Nigeria in May
Digital solution provider, Globacom, recorded the highest Internet subscriber growth among Nigeria’s major telecom companies for the month of May.
Data from the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, Nigeria’s total Internet users increased to 157 million in May, up from 154.3 million in April. That is a growth of 2.67 million users in one month.
Globacom led the market by adding about 1.2 million new Internet subscribers. This means Glo was responsible for almost half of all new Internet users in May.
The company’s subscriber base grew from 15.5 million in April to 16.8 million in May. Airtel came second with 1.07 million new users, moving from 54.8 million to 55.8 million. MTN added 382,894 users to reach 83.5 million.
T2 Mobile, formerly 9mobile, recorded no growth for the second month in a row. Its subscriber base remained at 802,534. This is despite its roaming agreement with MTN, which was approved almost a year ago to help T2 customers use MTN’s network in areas with poor coverage.
Industry experts say Glo’s strong growth is due to its ongoing network upgrade. Since last year, the company has been building new base stations, expanding its fibre network, and adding thousands of new 4G sites across cities and rural areas.
The upgrades have improved voice and data quality for customers, while Globacom remain committed to providing better network experience and affordable Internet services to more Nigerians.






