THE Honourable Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa Esq., has has been conferred with the status of Fellow by the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) in recognition of her leadership and contribution to the advancement of Nigeria’s hospitality, travel, and tourism sector.
The conferrment was made by the Director-General Abisoye Fagade on Thursday, at the launch of NIHOTOUR’s nationwide registration, induction, and professional practice certificate presentation exercise for personnel, practitioners, operators, and institutions in Nigeria’s hospitality, tourism, and creative economy ecosystem.
On the occasion, the Director General stated that the conferment honors individuals who have demonstrated excellence and dedication to raising standards, ethics, and professionalism in Nigeria’s tourism and hospitality industry.
Speaking at the ceremony, Musawa thanked the DG for the award, while commending NIHOTOUR for the registration initiative.
“This marks the beginning of a new era of professionalism, accountability, standardization and global competitiveness for the sector”.
The Minister said that the exercise is a strategic national intervention to establish credible professional standards, build a reliable national database of practitioners, eliminate quackery, and align Nigeria’s tourism workforce with global best practices.
“The tourism and hospitality industry is one of the fastest-growing sectors globally, contributing to employment, foreign exchange earnings, and cultural diplomacy. Nigeria has the cultural diversity, heritage assets, and creative talent to become a leading tourism hub in Africa and the world.
However, no sector can attain sustainable growth without structure, standards and skilled professionals,”Musawa said.
The Minister noted that the NIHOTOUR Establishment Act has strengthened the Institute’s mandate as both a training body and a regulatory and standardization authority for hospitality, tourism, and travel practitioners in Nigeria.
Minister Musawa urged all practitioners, operators, and institutions in the value chain to embrace the process as an investment in credibility, growth, and national development.
She congratulated inductees and certificate recipients, charging them to uphold integrity, innovation, and service delivery as ambassadors of Nigeria’s tourism and hospitality industry.
Speaking at the event, the Director-General Abisoye Fagade explained that the registration and certification drive is about restoring dignity to the profession and creating a workforce that Nigerians and the world can trust.
“Our goal is to ensure that every practitioner in hospitality, tourism, and travel meets internationally recognized standards of competence and ethics.”