The sound of the blasting guns could be heard miles away amidst the sound of the Bata and Gangan drums. It was this melodious mix of sound, music and dance that herald the maiden edition of the Oranyan Festival held at the Alaafin of Oyo’s Place in Oyo town, Oyo State.
An endless stream of people filed into the expansive Aganju forecourt of the ancient palace of Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi III, a sign that something unusual was going on within the large palace premises. It was the grand finale of the first-ever Oranyan Day.
Festivals of this nature are some of the sight and sounds of Nigeria. In addition to the famous Osun Osogbo and Argungun Fishing Festivals, the Oranyan Festival has joined the league of festivals in the country that has attracted tens of visitors from outside Nigeria. There is no gain saying that Ecotourism and cultural festivals are big tourism offerings in the country. Nigeria boosts of some of the best cultures in the world which makes it a destination of choice. Nigeria as a destination has so much to offer in terms of tourism, fashion, music, Nollywood, ecotourism amongst others. It has been ranked the top most visited country on the continent for business tourism. There is nowhere in the world that Nigeria is not seen as a fascinating destination. Tourism and culture in the country will activate this.
Aside South Africa, Nigeria is another country that has the highest potential for fashion retail. As the continent’s largest producer of oil, Nigeria has lifted the ban on importation of textile although local manufacturing of wax has gone moribund yet there is a renewed interest from international fashion and local clothing retailers in the fashion industry. Hence more attention needs to be paid to the development of tourism in the country.
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Therefore, the launch of the tourism brand identity for the country some weeks ago marked a new milestone in the development of tourism by the ministry of culture, tourism and national orientation currently headed by Edem Duke. The brand identity slogan called Fascinating Nigeria surely corroborate what the country stands for in terms of cultural tourism and abundant scenic beauty that qualifies it to compete on global tourism market.
“Ecotourism is big in Nigeria,” says Duke. Nigeria has some of the best cultures in the world which makes it a destination of choice. It is for this reason we have come up with a brand identity. There is no country in the world that doesn’t have a brand identity when it comes to tourism. Virtually every country in Africa has something that speaks to the ethos of their tourism products.”
Nigeria as a destination has so much to offer in terms of tourism, fashion, music, Nollywood, ecotourism amongst others. It has been ranked the top most visited country on the continent for business tourism. Hence the ministry of tourism, the new brand identity will further reposition Nigeria in the global tourism market. It is a proof that the culture and tourism ministry has been working quietly in the last few months to come up with a slogan that perfectly encapsulates what Nigeria stands for when it comes tourism.
“There is nowhere in the world that Nigeria is not seen as a fascinating destination,” adds Duke. “Tourism and culture in the country will activate this. We are working towards the brand launch in the first week of July in Abuja. The social media will begin a preliminary exposure of the brand.”
With the brand launch, Nigeria will be placed on the same tourism map as a destination of choice alongside South Africa that has previously had Limitless Possibility, Impossible as its brand slogans. It will also make the country be well positioned for local and foreign tourism consumption. This will ignite passion in State Commissioners of Tourism to market their states for tourism as they will begin to see Nigeria differently. It is not just a load for the Federal Government alone to carry. The ministry of tourism should encourage them to have one-night, two-nights or more tourism packages for visitors into their states. And all the states of the federation are very rich tourist destinations but not all of them are ready to take on foreign tourist visitors immediately. Therefore they should be encouraged to know the importance of developing their states for tourism.
With the brand identity, Nigeria is surely going on a path to years of recovery of past glory. It will also position the country for domestic consumption. Already, the ministry has taken a step in that direction as Duke explains: “I once told the commissioners of tourism to present to me a night package to sell their various states for tourism. Only a few of them have responded. And all the states of the federation are very rich tourist destinations but not all of them are ready to take on foreign tourist visitors immediately. Now states are just beginning to know the importance of developing their states for tourism.”
Also, Sally Mbanefo, director general of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) has also key into the vision. According to her, stakeholders in the Nigerian tourism market are beginning to think like business people as the new brand identity is opening the eyes of tour operators to the goldmine they are sitting on.
