NIHOTOUR trains tourism stakeholders, journalists in Lagos

To provide basic, intermediate, and advanced levels of training for personnel in Nigeria’s hospitality and tourism sectors, the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) recently organised a Train-the-Trainer programme on hospitality and tourism trade for industry stakeholders and tourism journalists in the Lagos.

Remarking during the training which took place at the Centre for Management Development (CMD), Magodo Lagos, the Director General of NIHOTOUR Nura Sani Kangiwa said this train-the-trainer programme is one of the numerous capacity development programmes we annually hold across Nigeria’s six-geo zones, to retrain and upskill instructors in the trades of tourism and hospitality in related schools.

Kangiwa elaborated that the training package had three different areas of focus including, Train-the-Trainer on Hospitality and Tourism Trade; Educational Awareness and Training on Conservation, Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Materials in South-West Zone of Nigeria; and Digital Content Creation for Tourism Journalists.

The sessions on the train-the-trainer in hospitality and tourism trade addressed emerging management schools of thought and best practices in trainer-trainee relationship, effective mentorship, and sustaining tourism learning ecosystems.

Similarly, the sessions on Educational Awareness and Training on Conservation, Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Materials in South-West Zone of Nigeria included studies on Yoruba cultural heritage appreciation and best practices on management of traditional relics for greater tourist and visitor experiences.

Members of the Association of Travel and Tourism Writers of Nigeria (ATTWON) and other independent travel journalists were part of the session on Digital Content Creation for tourism in Nigeria.

The training sessions for Journalists included mastery of social media platforms, tourism news reportage, usage of computer applications for curating pictures and best tools for editing videos using handheld devices like smartphones and tablets.

NIHOTOUR is a parastatal in the Federal Ministry of Tourism established by an Act of Parliament to train, certify and register personnel working the hospitality, travel, and tourism sectors of Nigeria. The Institute is also the coordinator of the hospitality and tourism sector skills council of Nigeria (HTSSCN).