NANTA, Ibom Air partner on Ghana retreat to fight trade barriers

Concerned about the impact of xenophobic conversations and trade barriers across the African continent, the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), in collaboration with Ghana-based Safari Valley Resort and supported by Ibom Air, will embark on a 4-day retreat to reignite a fresh commitment to intra-African tourism.

Guided by the theme, “Africa for Africa: Tourism, Unity and Shared Growth”, the retreat is designed as a pan-African engagement to rekindle hope and drive conversations around solutions to Afrophobia and the barriers to cultural tourism and travel opportunities within the continent.

Yinka Folami, President of NANTA, explained that Nigeria and Ghana share deep historical dreams of African unity, liberation, and pan-African cooperation. This, he said, is why the association is moving to recalibrate and rekindle hope for a strong and united Africa.

“From the intellectual foundations laid by our leaders during the independence movements to decades of cultural tourism exchange, trade and commerce, Nigeria and Ghana have repeatedly chosen partnership and collaboration over division,” Folami stated.

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Providing more insight, the NANTA President noted that the visit is more than cultural tourism.
“It is a historic handshake. A reaffirmation that Africa is not merely a collection of countries separated by colonial borders, but one community connected by history, culture, trade, enterprise and people,” he explained.

He further stated that the NANTA Executive Council will use the opportunity to deliberate on the future of the association, which recently marked its Jubilee celebration in Ibadan. Key on the agenda is NANTA’s commitment to advocating for easier movement of persons across Africa and building stronger tourism partnerships and policies that encourage Africans to see other African countries not as foreign territory, but as home.

In a light moment, Folami added:
“I have informed our Ghanaian brothers and sisters at Safari Valley that our NANTA delegation has a very capable chef, and therefore they should prepare for a spirited and friendly Jollof Rice competition.”

The retreat is expected to bring together travel trade leaders, tourism stakeholders, and policy advocates from both countries to chart a new path for seamless travel and cultural exchange within Africa.

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers. She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay. She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos. As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender. She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies. Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the 'Aviation Writer of the Year' Category. She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category. She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations. Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.