By Stella Odueme
Nigeria and China are set to deepen cooperation in tourism development, destination marketing and investment following a high-level meeting between the Director-General of the Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA), Ola Awakan, and the President of the China Tourism Academy, Dai Bin, in Beijing.
The meeting explored strategies to strengthen Nigeria’s presence in China’s outbound tourism market and attract more Chinese tourists to Nigerian destinations.
Awakan, who is on a working visit to China, emphasised the need for a structured China-Nigeria Tourism Market Development Programme to provide deeper insights into Chinese traveller trends and preferences.
He said the initiative would help Nigeria develop tourism products and destination-marketing strategies tailored to the Chinese market, while strengthening the country’s competitiveness in the global tourism industry.
The NTDA boss also advocated increased technical and capacity-building cooperation between both countries in tourism data and research, destination development, standards and institutional development.
According to him, stronger collaboration would create opportunities for Chinese tourism investors, operators and hospitality businesses to explore investment-ready projects in Nigeria.
Awakan further reiterated President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to diversifying Nigeria’s economy through tourism, stressing the importance of international partnerships in achieving the administration’s objectives.
Responding, Dai Bin commended Awakan’s initiatives in Nigeria’s tourism sector and described the country as richly endowed with cultural and historical tourism resources.
He expressed the China Tourism Academy’s readiness to establish a strategic partnership with the NTDA to support its mandate and promote tourism exchanges between Nigeria and China.
Dai Bin, however, stressed the need to improve Nigeria’s image and visibility among Chinese tourists and tourism operators, noting that greater awareness of the country would help strengthen bilateral tourism relations.
“Nigeria’s image needs to be promoted in the minds of the Chinese people for our operators and tourists to understand your country better. We need to create more exchange programmes in education, training and businesses,” he said.
The China Tourism Academy also expressed willingness to collaborate with the NTDA on the proposed establishment of a Nigerian International Tourism Promotion Centre in China.
The centre is expected to promote Nigerian destinations and tourism products, improve market intelligence and facilitate stronger tourism exchanges between the two countries.
The meeting was attended by the Director of the Department of International Exchange and Finance at the China Tourism Academy, Dr. Yang Jinsong, and other senior officials of the Academy.
The engagement was part of Awakan’s working visit to China, which also includes participation in a seminar on Climate Action and the Sustainable Development Goals for Developing Countries, facilitated by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce.
The meeting underscores Nigeria’s efforts to expand international tourism partnerships, attract foreign investment and position its destinations for greater participation in the global tourism market.