Mr. Bernard Bankole has been re-elected the president of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies, NANTA .
Mr. Bernard was re-elected president at the just concluded Annual General Meeting, AGM of the Association in Port- Harcourt on Saturday, March 24 with an emphatic 135 votes against 34 for Mr. Adebayo Muyiwa Salami of Divine Travels and Tours, his challenger.
The elective AGM which produced other key officers was attended by members of the association from across the country.
In his welcome address earlier at the 42nd AGM with the theme: “The Symbiotic Relationship of Aviation & Tourism: The Key to Economic Sustainability”, Bankole said in the last two years, NANTA under his leadership has tried to cement the dreams of their founding fathers with that of government and other strategic influences in the society.
Bankole noted that the effort to partner with government, other institutions and individuals is to give NANTA the desired publicity and also to create awareness of their relevance to the development of the country.
He stated that the choice of Port-Harcourt for the AGM was deliberately chosen by the exco to reassure their members on this flank that they are important to the dreams of national spread as a body and also to support the federal and Rivers State government on the gains of exploring the nation’s diversity of many tongues.
In her remarks, the Commissioner of Culture and Tourism Rivers State, Mrs Tonye Briggs Oniyide stated that tourism is the world’s 2nd largest industry, employing about 6.7 million persons on sustainable basis and has the potential to employ more than twice that number if the government, investors and the stakeholders commit themselves to their various responsibilities.
She observed that government has roles to play in policy formulation, implementation and regulation; while investors have their roles to play in funding and managing their business interests
The Commissioner pointed out that the stakeholders also have a role to play by safeguarding the legacies in the sector.
Oniyide explained that air transportation and tourism complement each other mainly because of the benefit they derive from each other.
She noted that tourism depends on transportation to bring visitors while the transportation industry depends on tourism to generate demands for its services.
According to the River State Commissioner of Culture and Tourism: “Air travels in the international routes are now on the increase because of more inter-regional movements, long distant travels in search of health care, leisure, religion etc, and thereby increasing demands for tourism attractions.
Also, the aviation sector, more than any other, facilitate mass and quick transportation between countries under safe, standardized and economical conditions and boost the volume of tourism visits to any country.
What this brings to focus is that accessibility is the main function behind the basics of tourism transport. It also means that air transport is the main mode for international tourism which should be replicated in countries seeking to achieve a sustainable tourism environment”.
She urged the federal government to encourage periodic modernization of facilities in the airports, encourage investment in air travels, adopt a pragmatic ease of doing business index and take urgent steps to develop national and artificial centres of attraction which abound in the country.
The Commissioner also enjoined state governments to see the need to promote sectorial growth in tourism and promote synergy with the local transport industry, stressing that one of the ways to do this is to ensure that states implement existing policies in the culture & tourism sectors and tailor them to meet the needs of the state’s population.
She maintained that the State Governor, Chief Nyesom Ezenwo Wike is aware of the many benefits which a well regulated tourism environment can be for state’s development and has directed a policy reappraisal in the Culture and Tourism sectors.
Oniyide expressed optoimism that in no distant time, arising from these reappraisals, several thousands of sustainable employments will be created in these sectors.
While inviting NANTA members to come and invest in the state, Oniyide stated that the Rivers State government is daily reconstructing roads, addressing infrastructural deficits, and providing legislative framework for investments in the State, and we invite you to come and invest.
In her words: “Tourism business, be it in the transportation sector, travels planning and execution as well as sites development and management, is huge business. Rivers State has it all. Come, invest in and tour Rivers State. It is a destination of choice”.
At the AGM, Ethiopian Airlines, Air France, and British Airways were honoured as best supportive foreign airlines, Airk Air was honoured with platinum award as the best supportive local airline, Air Peace was honoured in the same category with gold award, while Med-View Airline received the Silver award.
Other corporate organisations honoured include, South African Tourism as best supportive trade trade association, best supportive trade partner in platinum category went to Amadeus while best supportive trade partner in gold went to Galileo.
