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By Sunday Ani
President Muhammadu Buhari has signed into law the Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA) Act 2022.
According to the President, the Act, which replaced the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation Act, Cap N137, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, would develop and promote Nigeria as a travel and tourism destination.
It will encourage collaboration and partnership with the state governments, private sector/stakeholders, government agencies and international bodies, since the Authority will jointly regulate the industry with the state governments.
He noted that the tourism alliance would create platforms for partner stakeholders to benefit from international leveraging, tax reliefs and incentives, as well as national and international publicity.
The Conventions and Visitors Bureau (CVB) will promote Nigeria as a top tourism destination in Africa just as the Tourism Development Fund and Levy will increase funding in the sector, empower small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs), startups and entrepreneurs to build and boost their tourism businesses.
According to the Director General of NTDC, Chief Folarin Coker, every tourism reliant country in the world regulates the industry via a national body in line with international best practices.
He stressed that the tourism industry is the greatest employer of labour and could be leveraged on as a low hanging fruit to diversify and grow the nation’s economy.
‘The new tourism law ensures uniformity of standards for regulating Hospitality and Tourism Establishments (HTEs) across the federation. Nigeria cannot afford to have 36 different standards for regulating HTEs in the country, wherein a five-star hotel in one state is different from another five-star hotel in a different state.
“The significance of the Supreme Court’s judgment (SC. 462/2010) on tourism cannot be over-emphasised. However, in attempting to align with it, the new law is more focused on collaborative and partnership efforts with the private sector and states. This means that all states can have their own tourism laws assented to by their Governors, irrespective of the new NTDA law.
“The new law provides for a Tourism Partnership Alliance, where only willing stakeholders under the alliance can be regulated, as well as benefit from the various federal advantages, which the alliance has to offer,” he said.
He emphasised that the tour operating company, under the law, only serves as a benchmark to private companies and stakeholders and not as a competitor. “The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) only relates with the Ministry of Information and Culture, and more practically NTDC on issues of tourism, namely accreditation of tourism bodies and stakeholders, financial benefits, waivers and standardisation among others. They do not deal with states or private stakeholders directly, and this has caused the country to lose a lot of benefits and incentives from the body.
“The new law has expunged the clause on levying one percent income on corporate bodies or any other body. Also, the issue of double taxation has been further minimised wherein levies on the TDL are levies already on the ground like the visa on arrival, while the one percent per room rate is in line with international best practices.
“The new NTDA law will significantly promote and develop tourism in the country. It will create collaborative synergy on tourism across all tiers of government and other private sector stakeholders.
“It will also create entrepreneurship and jobs, especially for the youth and women. It will equally greatly improve the economy and reduce crime and insecurity,” he stated.
