Abia State Government on Thursday, initiated moves to regulate its hospitality sector through a public hearing and with a charge for stakeholders in the hospitality industry to partner government in ensuring a robust economy in the state.
Speaking at the event tagged “Regulation of Hospitality Sector in Abia State”, the coordinator of the public hearing and Special Adviser to Abia Governor on Policies and Interventions, Rev. Father Christian Anokwuru said the essence of the public hearing is to carry the stakeholders along in policy formulation and ensure that the hospitality sector operates at the highest standards of quality, safety, and sustainability.
According to him, the policy is aimed at enhancing security in the state and making the hospitality sector more appealing to visitors and investors while boosting revenue generation He described hospitality industry as a cornerstone of Abia State’s economic development and cultural promotion, hence, the need for formulation of the hospitality policy.
According to him, “This policy is a testament to our commitment to fostering a thriving, competitive, and environmentally responsible hospitality industry that benefits our local communities end attracts visitors from around the globe. This policy provides a clear regulatory framework that aligns with international best practices, ensuring that all hospitality establishments in Abia State deliver exceptional service, maintain rigorous safety and security protocols, an0s well as adopt sustainable practices”.
Also speaking, the Senior Special Assistant to the governor on Tourism and Entertainment, Mr. Okey Justice Martins said the State government is committed to providing enabling environment for businesses to thrive, adding that there is no way the government would come up with a policy without involving the relevant stakeholders.
“This government will do everything possible to make the business space very conducive. Be rest assured that the administration of Governor Alex Otti have you in mind. There is no way we are going to finish all of these and not have the input of the stakeholders. We will surely inform you when we are done with that process”.
“You know this government does not do anything in secret, we are very open minded, we are very transparent and that is why, there is nothing we do that we don’t bring it to your attention. What we want is to make Abia State a destination for tourism and investments”, J. Martins stressed.
In their contributions, some operators of hospitality industry in Abia including the Chairman, Nigeria Hotels, Abia chapter, Prince Charles Ezeala, Mr. Peterson Agu, Chief Cletus Ibeh among others noted that the idea of coming up with a policy framework for hospitality industry is a good development.
They however requested that a draft of the policy be made available to them for study and making necessary inputs. They assured of their readiness to partner with the State government as investors.
The public hearing, which attracted the presence of the representative of the Commissioner for Information and Culture and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Sir Chris Onwuegbu, an aide of the government, Eze Nzenwata Mbakwe among others featured presentation of the draft policy by Mr. Joshua Ogbade, a researcher at the Abia Policies Innovation Centre.