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From Okwe Obi, Abuja
The Federal Government has promised to weed out unwholesome practices bedeviling the hospitality industry, and inject globally-approved standards.
Minister of Tourism, Lola Ade-John, made the commitment at the 7th Edition of the International Hospitality, Tourism and Eco-sustainability Forum (IHTEF), yesterday in Abuja.
The theme of event was Emerge Together: Reimagining a Green Hospitality Economy.
According to Ade-John, government will put in place sustainable practices to reduce wastage like water, energy and to foster a good working environment for Nigerians.
“I think the big take for me is that it is an opportunity for people to learn and also to put in place sustainable practices and infrastructure.
“For instance, the reduction of wastage even power-related issues and also engagement with the community to embrace these sustainable practices.
“One of the speakers is from the ministry of environment. I know that they are working on some standards to ensure that some of the sustainable practices are imbibed.
“I think there is a target for 2030 to reduce emission. We will be looking at our Air conditioning, food, wastage, water to reduce the emission for sustainable,” she said.
Earlier, Executive Director of IHTEF Africa, Chibuikem Diala, said the conference was organised for stakeholders to weave ideas on how to drive the economy of the hospitality industry.
Diala suggested that sanctions should be meted out to those who would flout the requirements for a progressive hospitality business.
“What we have done today started in 2016. The whole idea is to drive standard in the hospital industry. Today, is our 7th edition.
“The whole idea is to see how we can build an economy of hospitality that is resilient.
“So, what we have done today is to bring stakeholders, owners, investors, hotel workers and the minister of tourism. So, that shows you strong leadership on her part.
“The world is going sustainable and we cannot afford to do anything that is unsustainable. We are talking about sustainability in the hospitality sector, to manage the resources like water, workers’ welfare.
“Most importantly, how do we drive what I call circular procurement? Circular procurement is about where we buy our stuffs for hotels, where do you purchase? Do you purchase locally?
“I bet you if you begin to consider circular purchasing in our local economy, we will improve our economy, the hotels will work better, we will reduce importation and at the same time, we will make sure that the local farmers cultivate more.
“That is what we have done today. This is the beginning of the conversation about hospitality sustainability in Nigeria.”
Also, he advised that there should be constant training and retraining of hospitality workers.
“Firstly, my advice to the hospitality workers is that we need to begin to enforce certain practices that help to drive good leadership.
“We need to also train our workers. We need to enforce certain standards that will drive growth. If you do not do that then you are not going anywhere. The government needs to bring in enabling policies.”
