By Joyce Remi-Babayeju
Director General of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR), Alhaji Nura S Kangiwa has said that the agency is ready to train members of the Nigeria Association of Tourism Operators, NATOP, on Hospitality .
Kangiwa who made this promise when when officials of NATOP paid him a visit in his office in Abuja yesterday stressed the importance of training and knowledge-based skills as the bedrock for professional conduct of any given trade to achieve adequate, efficient and proper service delivery.
This was contained in a press release signed by Ahmed Sule, Deputy Director, Media Public Relations of NIHOTOUR, made available to Daybreak.
According to the release, Kangiwa who received NATOP led by it’s President Bilqiz Abdul called on all members of the association avail themselves of the training services offered by the Institute in order to improve and upgrade their skills for better, great and safer service delivery in the sector.
The DG said that the institute is repositioned for better quality service delivery through proper and adequate training and re-training for all professionals and operators in the industry.
The Director General said it has been the long desire of NIHOTOUR as custodians and operators of the Hospitality, Travel and Tourism Sector Skill Council of the country to have all operators and practitioners in the industry comply with the mandatory provision of knowledge-based skill acquisition via training for better service delivery in line with global best practices, noting that it might soon be impossible for quack and ‘all comers’ into the industry to practice without due certification.
Bilqiz said NATOP’s courtesy visit was to seek support of the Institute in training members of the Association on professional skills and competence to operate optimally as professional tour operators, adding that the association is disturbed by the presence of unqualified practitioners in the sector.
