From left in the front row: ATBOWATON’s National President, Otunba Ganiyu Balogun, the Permanent Secretary, Ogun State Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Segun Olaotan, Ogun State Chairman of ATBOWATON, Alhaji Olayiwola Muritala and the Director of Tourism in the ministry, Mrs. Ronke Tokunbo Peters with some other members of the association.
By Foluso ADELAJA
Ogun State may soon emerge as an aquatic paradise and a leading tourism destination of choice in Nigeria as hopes for its development in this direction is coming by the way of a group of investors who has volunteered to invest in the tourism potentials and aquatic treasures of the state.
The group, the Association of Tourist Boat Owners and Water Transporters of Nigeria (ATBOWATON), has approached the Ogun State Government asking to help it develop Tongeji, an island of the state lying offshore on its borders with the Republic of Benin along with other tourism potentials in the state.
Members of ATBOWATON in Ogun State led by its Chairman, Alhaji Olayiwola Muritala and accompanied by its National President, Otunba Ganiyu Balogun, a foremost tourism investor and practitioner in Lagos State and the Managing Director of Gani Tarzan Marine Enterprises Limited, has assured the state government of its preparedness to help it develop its aquatic tourism.
In a meeting convened recently at the instance of the association in the conference room of Ogun State Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Otunba Balogun told the Permanent Secretary, Mr. Segun Olaotan who represented the Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Dr. Oluwatoyin Taiwo, that the prospect of aquatic tourism in the state is enormous.
Otunba Balogun noted that waters of the state are calm enough for water sports and related tourism endeavours while its shores are attractive too for tourism to thrive. He stressed that the state is also well endowed with abundant land that could be developed to further its interests in tourism.
Otunba Balogun delivering his speech at the meeting.
He said members of ATBOWATON were ready to help the state develop these potentials as there are tourists all over the world looking for new and interesting places with innovative features.
Speaking in the same vein, the Secretary of OGUN State ATBOWATON, Arogundade Olalekan Kazeem implored the ministry to give a serious consideration to the association’s proposal as they are ready to partner with the state on aquatic tourism, an industry their association has expertise in.
The General Secretary of Ogun State ATBOWATON, Arogundade Olalekan Kazeem poses withDirector of Tourism, Mrs. Ronke Tokunbo Peters.
He pointed out that the state could improve its earnings in tourism dramatically through investment in this sector through public and private partnership initiatives adding that ATBOWATON is constituted of several investors that could help the state gain advantage in aquatic tourism sector.
Responding, Mr. Olaotan welcomed the association’s entourage on behalf of the Commissioner for Tourism and noted that their visit was timely as the ministry has just recently been mandated by the State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun to work on the state’s tourism sites so as to meet world standards.
He said the state government gives much preference to public, private partnerships (PPP) as it has realised that it cannot do it alone adding that in view of this, the association’s proposal will be accorded express approval.
The permanent secretary therefore called for immediate establishment of a committee comprising of representatives of ATBOWATON and directors of the ministry, all of who were also at the meeting to start working on the association’s proposal.
He ordered that the committee which will be headed by the Director of Tourism, Mrs. Ronke Tokunbo Peters is to identify the tourism sites to be included in this initiative, identify the gains for the state, the way to go about the developments and the impact on the people.
Members of ATBOWATON pose with the director of tourism.
