Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has said his administration is developing a tourism master plan for Lagos to boost the sector and create more jobs.
The governor spoke on Friday at a lecture for journalists covering the governor’s office, with the theme, ‘Harnessing the Tourism and Entertainment Potential of Lagos in the next 50 years: The Role of the Media.’
Ambode said his administration had done a lot in the last 29 months to promote tourism and attract both local and foreign tourists in order to boost the revenue of the state.
The governor, who was represented by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Community and Communications, Kehinde Bamigbetan, said he was in the process of developing a tourism master plan to drive tourism in Lagos.
Ambode said, “A lot of people come to Lagos State on a daily basis. The government will not ask them to go back. So, tourism provides us a good platform to engage the people.”
Earlier, Bamigbetan, who delivered a lecture on the theme, said Lagos had a lot of sites that tourists could visit.
“That is why there is the need for tourism master plan which will give us a clearer way forward,” he added.
He said the government should have a database on tourism, while the private sector should be invited to come in.
Bamigbetan urged the media to shape the attitudes of Lagosians towards tourism and demonstrate sensitivity to the issues that matter to tourists.
He said, “Crime and security reporting are areas where the media need to partner the government in order not to hurt tourism.”
The Chief Executive Officer, Mighty Media, Olumide Iyanda, said the media must be given a front seat role in all activities of government if it was serious about tourism promotion.
Source: today.ng
