Abia Collaborates with FG to Develop Tourism Sites

Charles Ajunwa

Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has said the State would become the most visited destination in Nigeria as it collaborates with the federal government in the area of tourism.

Otti, who declared this when he received a delegation from the National Commission for Museums and Monuments led by its Director General, Hon. Olugbile Holloway, said the collaboration with the federal government would assist in developing and harnessing tourism potential in Abia.

In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Ukoha Njoku Ukoha, Otti said, “When you talk about the National War Museum, Ojukwu Bunker, the Long Juju of Arochukwu, the cave in Umunneochi, the Azumini Blue River, and a whole lot of others, you’ll find out that if we collaborate and work together, Abia will be one of the most visited destinations in Nigeria.

“This is promoted by the fact that we’ve done our best to cage insecurity to make sure that this place is safe. We take it very seriously.

“It will be very nice if we can take the tourist sites one after the other. I don’t know how much budget you have but I know it will cost a lot of money trying to just fix the infrastructure not to talk of the other part of it, which is the storytelling part.

“We’ve already started doing something before you came. I think having you here is one of the happiest things for me, that means that the centre that is in control of some of the tourist attractions are showing interest. We are ready to collaborate and work together,” Otti said.

Otti, who expressed his  over the collaboration with the federal government said the earlier challenge for tourism in the state was hotel accommodation.

“Of course, I did mention in 2023 that the major challenge is the hotels where people can stay and I’m happy that we’re almost there. I just finished a meeting with the proposed contractors for the Radisson Blu Hotels and international convention in Aba.

“We have our eyes on tourism. I’m very happy to work with you. The only thing we can do is get the National Assembly people to also put their voices to ensuring that we have sufficient funding to rehabilitate the War Museum,” Otti added.

He said that when his administration came onboard newly, he had to first of all guarantee security and provide Infrastructure before he started looking towards tourism.

The Commissioner for Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Dr. Matthew Ekwuribe, said the collaboration with the federal government would bring tourism development to Abia State, noting that Abia State has a lot of tourist centres owned by the federal government but noted that the tourist centres were currently not in good condition.