*By Francis Wilfred*
The Director General of National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), Nura Sani Dangiwa said the 2024 Gastronomy Festival will shape the future of tourism, empower local communities and foster development in Nigeria.
Sani Dangiwa made this known at the 4th NIHOTOUR Gastronomy Festival and Gala night with a theme: “Sustainable Food Production from Farm to the Table” on Friday in Abuja.
According to him, the event will expose professionally trained food and beverage production and service expertise and a wide array of prepared flavours of rich ancestral traditions from different countries to foster stronger community bonds and promote Nigerian culture worldwide.
Furthermore, he that this event is to expose Nigerians and global community to the professional skillful art of appreciating and exposing our foods, cooking, culinary skills and cuisine to the hospitality, tourism occupational trades and the general public. Hence, keeping with the spirit of exposing and promoting the works of trained competencies with quality assurance and standards is germane to achieving the Institute mandate.
“Our goal is to collectively shape the future of Nigeria gastronomy tourism, emphasizing its potential to empower local communities and foster rural development and socio-economic growth as an all strategic priorities outlined in the UN Tourism Agenda for Africa – Tourism for Inclusive Growth,” he said.
Minister of Tourism, Lola Ade-John, who was represented by her Special Adviser on Policy and Legal Service, Teniola Jibike commended NIHOTOUR and other diplomatic nations for showcasing their diverse cuisine, which reflects the gastronomic beauty and diversity in Nigeria and others.
She added that the message to all of us is to eat healthy, eat fresh, eat food devoid of preservatives and live longer.”
Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, Juan Ignacio Sell, emphasized the importance of gastronomy for Identity, a tool for international dialogue and tourism promotion.
He also said that Gastronomy can be crucial for identity it can even become a tool for international discourse and key for tourism promotion.
In another note, he stressed that Nigeria is blessed with a very wonderful and diverse cuisine.
Also, the Cultural Counsellor of Chinese Embassy, Mr. Li Xuda noted that Nigeria and China are well-known for their splendid culture, and they share similarities in many fields, including the field of gastronomy.
Xuda stated that since both countries have vast land and abundant resources, each region has different climate and agricultural products. Our food culture has formed since the ancient time and has already been deeply rooted in our traditional culture, the rapid social development in recent decades has laid a solid foundation for China and Nigeria’s food culture.
On this solid foundation, he reinstated that he is convinced that in the future our food culture will be better developed, people’s living standard will be further improved, and our two countries’ sustainable development will be greatly promoted!
Other highlights of the events were a cake decoration competition, food sampling of cuisines from the six Geopolitical Zones of Nigeria, China, Spain, South Africa Senegal, DR Congo, Trinidad and Tobago among others, as well as induction of new Fellows of the Institute (FHTI) for their outstanding contributions to the growth and development of the hospitality and tourism sectors in Nigeria.
