Prof. Wasiu Babalola, Professor of Hotel Management and Tourism, Atiba University, Oyo state, on Saturday called on the Federal Government to integrate gender diversity in the succession planning policy for gender inclusiveness. Babalola made the call during HOSPITALITEA 4.0, organised by Women in Hospitality in Nigeria (WIHN), with the theme “Leveraging Local Experiences for Hospitality and Tourism Growth in Nigeria”.

He said this was important for national development process. “It would be useful to develop formal policies on appointment, recruit beyond traditional network and integrate gender diversity into the succession planning policy among other actions.“The federal government must consciously incorporate the feminine hospitality concepts in its policies, because identified inclusion and protection are very important to national development,” he said.Babalola noted that Nigeria could copy from other countries across the world, citing the United States where Californian government had created a sanction of US$ 10,000 against companies which refuse to incorporate females in their board.He said this could be replicated in Nigeria to enable the female gender have full participation and involvement in virtually all aspects of national economic growth.He also urged the Federal Government and corporate organizations to train its staff on emotional intelligence for efficiency and positive output. Mr Nkereuwem Onung, National President, Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN), said that the tourism and hospitality industries were the lowest hanging fruits.He, however, urged government at all levels and individuals to harness the full potential of the industries. Onung commended efforts of the Lagos State government and private operators towards the growth of the tourism and hospitality industries. He called on the Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) which was saddled with the responsibility of marketing Nigeria’s tourism potential to the world, to work with state governments to effectively achieve its goals. He said FTAN is currently working on setting up zonal councils and strengthening the state offices so that the association could work unanimously to achieve common goals. Earlier, Justina Ovat, National President, (WIHN), urged tourism and hospitality stakeholders to harness the enormous resources in local content to successfully drive the industry. Ovat said that WIHN intends to support and unify women while empowering and inspiring them to grow and attain leadership positions in the hospitality and tourism industry. Mrs Adenike Adedoyin-Ajayi, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, disclosed that the state tourism masterplan had been designed for practitioners to access from now till 2028.Adedoyin-Ajayi said that the state invested in a lot of ideas to boost tourism activities within the state like the training of tour guides and taxi, Uber drivers. “We have trained taxi and Uber drivers within Lagos State to create positive experiences and impressions about the state and for effective visitors’ management. “We are open to collaborations in the hospitality and tourism industries for growth,” she said. (NAN)