States And Federal Government Urged To Institutionalise Tourism Policies To Drive Sustainable Economic Growth And Job Creation

States and Federal Government urged to institutionalise tourism policies to drive sustainable economic growth and job creation Tourism | Economy | Policy | Sustainable Development Stakeholders have urged both state and federal governments to institutionalise tourism policies in Nigeria, positioning the sector as a structured and sustainable driver of economic growth, job creation, and national development. Experts and industry stakeholders in Nigeria’s tourism and travel sector are calling for stronger institutional frameworks to guide tourism development, warning that the sector cannot deliver long-term economic value without consistent policy direction and implementation. They stressed that tourism has the potential to become a major contributor to Nigeria’s economy if properly structured through clear policies, regulatory stability, and coordinated action between government levels and private sector operators. According to the stakeholders, institutionalising tourism policies would ensure continuity beyond political cycles, improve investor confidence, and enable long-term planning for infrastructure, marketing, and human capital development in the sector. They also emphasized that tourism development must align with sustainability principles, ensuring that economic gains do not come at the expense of environmental protection, cultural heritage, and community well-being. The call reflects growing concern that despite Nigeria’s vast tourism potential including cultural heritage sites, natural landscapes, and creative industries the sector remains underdeveloped due to weak policy execution and fragmented governance.

• Lack of strong institutional frameworks for tourism development
• Need for continuity and policy stability across government transitions
• Weak coordination between federal and state tourism agencies
• Underutilisation of Nigeria’s tourism assets
• Need to align tourism with sustainable development principles

• Potential increase in tourism-related employment opportunities
• Improved investor confidence in the tourism sector
• Stronger public-private partnerships in tourism infrastructure
• Enhanced preservation of cultural and natural heritage
• Diversification of Nigeria’s economy beyond oil dependence

Stakeholders emphasized that tourism can only achieve sustainable growth if it is properly institutionalised and treated as a long-term economic pillar rather than a short-term policy initiative. Nigeria’s tourism sector has long been identified as an underdeveloped area with significant potential for economic diversification. However, challenges such as inconsistent policies, poor infrastructure, insecurity, and weak institutional coordination have limited its contribution to national GDP and employment generation. The renewed call for institutionalising tourism policies underscores a broader push to reposition tourism as a strategic economic sector in Nigeria, capable of driving sustainable growth if supported by strong governance structures and consistent implementation.