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Desirable tourism in Nigeria?

Could Nigeria benefit from a boom in tourism, similar to other African countries? Using Badagry as a case study, Oladayo Ramon Ibrahim identifies important opportunities for tourism growth, focusing on the role of culture and the environment in sustainable tourism development.
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The Millennium Development Goals are accepted as a common framework for development. But even though they are global, the MDGs are most effective when linked to local realities. This means adapting them to make the most of local social capital, using locally available resources and getting local communities involved.

Take tourism development in Badagry, Nigeria. Badagry is a poor and underdeveloped area, but there is considerable potential for tourism which could help to reduce poverty. This potential is diverse with many different attractions, including:

• cultural festivals and events such as Zangbeto, and other masquerades
• natural resources including creeks, lagoons and the sea
• historical attractions, for example the Vlekete Slave Market and Baracoons
• other social and cultural attractions, including the Agbalata Market and the warmth and hospitality of local people.

Tourism in Nigeria suffers from incoherent policies, a severe lack of funds and ‘piecemeal’ development strategies that restrict tourism growth and limit the benefits to individuals and communities. For example, national tourism policies contain several objectives but have no priorities making implementation extremely difficult.

Furthermore, the government has many misconceptions about tourism. It associates tourism with hotels and physical developments, or development of specific sites such as parks, gardens, beaches and museums. This view fails to consider the interweaving roles of nature, the environment and people in tourism.

Policymakers need to adopt a more integrated view of local environments and cultures when developing tourism policies. Although there may be particular places and sites in a region that are important for tourism, these should not be isolated from their wider surroundings. When describing and marketing a destination, tourism policies should consider the historical and contemporary character of people and places a region – including all the sceneries and cultures, not just the main attractions.

While developing physical facilities such as hotels is essential, promoting the unique culture of a place is of equal importance – it is this culture that offers variable and exciting experiences to visitors. A successful tourism strategy must provide people with desirable experiences, or they will not come back or be inspired to ‘spread the word’ about a wonderful destination to others.

According to Chokor (1983), the most appropriate tourism policies come from coordinating and describing the qualities of our environments from the perspective of both tourists and local communities. In Badagry, the rich cultural heritage and artistic endowments should be used to attract tourists – from within and outside the country – on a continuous basis. This is particularly attractive as a development strategy. Investing in cultural tourism is less capital-intensive than developing resorts.

• As tourism expands and brings wider economic benefits – including income, employment, revenue and foreign exchange – there is the potential for a disturbing array of social and environmental impacts.
• Understanding these issues is crucial for the proper planning and management of sustainable tourism.
• In turn, sustainable tourism development requires that the social and environmental implications of tourism development are integrated into wider development policies.

Further Information
Oladayo Ramon Ibrahim
Department of Town and Regional Planning
School of Environmental Studies
Lagos State Polytechnic
Lagos
Nigeria
Tel +234 8023239147
oladayoibrahim@yahoo.com

See also
‘Perspectives on Environment and Tourism in Nigeria’ in Environment and Tourism in Nigeria, Environment and Behaviour Association of Nigeria, University of Lagos: Lagos, by B A Chokor, 1983

February 2009

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