Turnover of top Lagos hotels in 2014 dropped by N8bn – Commissioner

The Lagos State government on Tuesday said the annual turnover of the top 12 hotels in the state in 2014 dropped by N8 billion owing to the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease (EVD).

Disun Holloway, commissioner for tourism and intergovernmental affairs, made the disclosure at a news conference in Ikeja.

He said that the drop from the average turnover of N46 billion resulted from a decline of occupancy rates in the hotels from 75 percent to 36 percent.

Holloway said that the disease had much more impact on the hospitality industry as smaller hotels and restaurants also recorded lower patronage during the period.

The commissioner said that issues like epidemics and security were threats to tourism development, as they were great disincentive to patronage.

Holloway said that tourism had not attained its rightful position as a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the country due to poor infrastructure.

He pointed out that if essential infrastructure like electricity was in regular supply, the sector would be a major contributor to the economy.