NIGERIA AND THE PROMISE OF DECEMBER TOURISM

 Aviation authorities should make entry and exit through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport as seamless as possible, urges Joshua J. Omojuwa

My year started on the best possible note because I spent almost four hours chatting with and listening to England football legend, Eniola Aluko. I could do several articles on the various aspects of our conversation, but the bit that fit into this piece is her story on Japan. She mentioned how she’d somehow ended up picking an airport one hour away from Osaka, her intended location. So, she had to board a taxi via an app. The journey about took about one hour, but then, with the street markings in Japanese, she had issues locating her destination. She had to depend on the taxi driver to speak with her contact. In the end, between finding that location and helping her with her luggage, the taxi driver had spent another 45 minutes assisting Eniola. Like any sensible person in her position would have felt, she decided she was going to tip the driver.

This is where it gets interesting, because the driver staunchly refused. He felt that receiving a tip “devalues duty”. Do you know how crazy this is? You picked a cab for a one-hour journey, driver ends up spending another 45 minutes with you because they needed to help you outside of their primary responsibility of getting you to your destination, they then refuse your tip appreciating them for the gesture. Eniola mentioned that that experience was reflective of Japan. How it felt so different, yet she felt welcomed amidst that difference. If you were listening to her, you’d have made a note to visit Japan, at least once in your lifetime.

Tourism is like good or poor tailoring; the product speaks for itself. And people are quick to spread the message. The choices you make about where to holiday or school are influenced by those who had been on the journey before you. I was going to visit Japan next month, but I wanted to set out immediately after Eniola shared her experience.

Lagos has shown immense potential as one of the best places to party in the world. It has gone a step further to now increasingly becoming a hot-spot for December fun-seekers around the world. What started as Nigerians in diaspora returning home in December is turning out to a bigger homecoming which includes friends of Nigerians and those just curious about partying in Lagos. This mirrors Afrobeats global reach by the way.

I met Tia Taylor of Experience Kaabo. Kaabo is set up as a bridge to help curate experiences in Nigeria and Africa for those looking to explore the continent. I had gone to watch the Lagos Liga Final, an epic football tournament adding an extra layer to the December experience, when I met Tia. Born to a Nigerian father but had never been to Nigeria until about five years ago. She is now building a multi-layered company that ensures all the tourists need to do is get themselves to the airport in Lagos, Tia’s Experience Kaabo takes it from there until they are returned to the airport. All the tourists I met on her entourage seemed to have truly had a great time in Lagos.

How do we scale this? With Nigeria and most of Africa, it hasn’t been about what we do not have, it is been about our inability to scale. How do we turn thousands into millions? With that comes all the multisectoral benefits of tourism, and the investments certain to follow.

We cannot do this without fixing our airports, security and then building all the elements and appurtenances of infrastructure necessary to make the Lagos and Nigeria experience worth the while.

The Lagos State Government, to build on the tourism gains of “December In Lagos”, must work with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Ministry of Aviation to make entry and exit through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) as seamless as possible. That airport is the greatest moderating factor for all the tourism dollars we will or won’t attract this year. Better to call all those officials, ask them how much they make from begging passengers, then give them double the amount. And then let them know whoever gets caught begging passengers will be prosecuted. If it comes down to it that is.

Whatever it is they receive in those embarrassing solicitations is too insignificant compared to the impact and rewards of a free-flowing airport experience. Across the board, Nigeria has suffered from people’s obsession with their personal short-term gains over our collective long-term gains. This has been our bane over decades. Everyone is looking to get what they can out of the country, no matter what it costs the country in the long-term. I doubt there is even any consideration for the cost of these destructive actions. This is an issue deserving of its own focus.

To the immediate subject matter. Lagos owns December, or at least has the potential to. When it does, this will translate to the rest of the country — I met tourists who came to Lagos but ended up traveling the South-West. To scale, we must look at all the bottlenecks and get them out of the way. Tourists can go looking at animals, plantations and mountains elsewhere. They want to party in Lagos, let’s make access to the party the easiest it can possibly be. From December parties, we can extend into some other big months in the summer. But first, the airport.

Enough has been written on this page about the low hanging fruits on that front. The ministry and relevant agency have released their policy position on what needs to happen. Nigerians must play their part by sharing their experiences, good or bad, that way those responsible for making the change happen are either encouraged to do more or reminded to do what they were meant to do. If we manage to build a tourist economy at scale in December, it will have far-reaching effects on our much-needed desire for a truly sophisticated economy.

 Omojuwa is chief strategist, Alpha Reach/BGX Publishing