FTAN-NIHOTOUR Dispute: Stakeholder Proposes Chartered Institute, Backs Review Of Tourism Laws

Maryam Aminu

A fresh proposal to end the prolonged regulatory and professional disputes in Nigeria’s tourism industry has emerged, with a stakeholder calling for the establishment of a chartered professional institute to unite practitioners and associations across the hospitality, tourism, travel and tour sectors.

The proposal by Chief Dr. Obinna Ugochukwu Alexander Onyeocha comes against the backdrop of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN)’s call for the review and re-enactment of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) Act and the Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA) Act.

FTAN had in July urged the Federal Government to return both laws to the National Assembly for review, arguing that ambiguities in the legislation had contributed to regulatory conflicts, disagreements and litigation within the tourism industry.

Onyeocha, Managing Consultant/Principal-CEO of Everything Hospitality and Tourism Services Nig. Ltd., Abuja; Convener/Chairman of the Main Organizing Committee of the National Conference for Domestic and Eco Tourism Exhibition in Nigeria (NCDET); and President of the Nigeria Tourism Advocacy Group (NTAG), proposed the establishment of the Chartered Institute for Hospitality, Tourism, Travel, Tour, Administration and Management (CIHTTAM).

He said the proposal was aimed at providing a structured professional framework capable of accommodating existing associations while clearly defining their relationship with government agencies, regulators and the private sector.

According to Onyeocha, the current disagreement between FTAN and NIHOTOUR should not be allowed to become a permanent institutional struggle.

“The country cannot continue to build tourism professionalism around institutional disagreements,” he said.

He argued that Nigeria needed a legally recognised professional institution that would provide a common professional platform for practitioners and associations covering hospitality, tourism, travel, tour operations, administration and management.

“What Nigeria needs is a legally recognised professional institution that provides a common professional home for practitioners and associations across hospitality, tourism, travel, tour operations, administration and management, while clearly defining its relationship with NIHOTOUR, the responsible Federal Ministry, other regulators and the private sector,” he said.

Onyeocha stressed that the proposed institute was not intended to fight NIHOTOUR or dismantle existing professional associations.

Rather, he said it should be created through an Act of the National Assembly to establish a coherent professional structure for the industry.

Onyeocha said NIHOTOUR should continue to play its statutory role, particularly in hospitality and tourism training, professional development and the implementation of its legal mandate.

“NIHOTOUR has an important national role in hospitality and tourism training, professional development and the implementation of its statutory mandate. The solution is not to weaken NIHOTOUR. The solution is to clearly define institutional boundaries and create mechanisms for cooperation,” he said.

He proposed that the new institute could complement NIHOTOUR by focusing on professional standards, ethics, continuing professional development, professional grades, specialist practice and professional representation.

His proposal comes as concerns over overlapping responsibilities between NIHOTOUR and NTDA continue to feature prominently in industry discussions. Reports on the FTAN position indicate that the NIHOTOUR Act expanded the institute’s responsibilities beyond training, while concerns have also been raised over areas of overlap with the NTDA’s regulatory functions.

The President of the Nigeria Tourism Advocacy Group said the objective should not be to eliminate existing professional associations but to remove duplication, rivalry and uncertainty over professional representation.

“Let us abolish the struggle, not the people. Let us abolish overlapping mandates, not professional associations. Let us replace rivalry with a structured professional system,” he said.

Under his proposed model, existing associations could retain their identities and specialised functions while becoming recognised professional stakeholders within a wider national professional framework.

He said travel agencies, tour operators, hotels, restaurants, destination managers, tourism consultants, event professionals and other practitioners should be able to maintain their specialist associations while participating in a common professional system.

The proposed institution would be known as the Chartered Institute for Hospitality, Tourism, Travel, Tour, Administration and Management, with the acronym CIHTTAM.

Onyeocha said its areas of professional practice could include:

– Hospitality Management
– Hotel Management
– Tourism Management
– Travel Management
– Tour Operations
– Destination Management
– Hospitality Administration
– Tourism Administration
– Events and Leisure Management
– Food and Beverage Management
– Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism
– Domestic and Cultural Tourism
– Hospitality and Tourism Consultancy
– Tourism Marketing
– Revenue and Commercial Management
– Hospitality and Tourism Education and Training

He emphasised that CIHTTAM should not become another ordinary membership association or non-governmental organisation.

“It should ultimately have a legal personality and professional mandate established through an Act of the National Assembly, subject of course to proper legal drafting, stakeholder consultation and legislative approval,” he said.

Among the structures proposed for the institute are a governing council, professional membership grades, a code of professional ethics, continuing professional development, disciplinary procedures, specialist colleges or directorates, national professional membership records, professional research and publications, and transparent procedures for recognising professional experience and competency.

Onyeocha said the hospitality, tourism, travel and tour sector had grown too important to remain fragmented across competing institutional interests.

He proposed an architecture involving the Federal Government and responsible ministry, statutory regulators and government agencies, NIHOTOUR, the proposed Chartered Professional Institute, specialist professional associations, academia and training institutions, as well as private-sector operators and practitioners.

He said the arrangement would create “one professional ecosystem rather than a collection of competing institutions.”

The proposal also comes amid FTAN’s renewed demand for legislative changes to the NIHOTOUR and NTDA Acts.

FTAN President, Dr. Badaki Aliyu, said the federation wanted both laws returned to the National Assembly for re-enactment to clearly define the roles of government agencies and industry stakeholders. The federation also urged the agencies to focus on their original mandates while the review process was ongoing.

FTAN further called on the Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture, Tourism and the Creative Economy to expedite the review process, while reaffirming its willingness to engage stakeholders in resolving the issues surrounding the laws.

Onyeocha said the proposed professional institute should emerge from broad consultation rather than be imposed on the industry.

He proposed a national stakeholder consultation, comprehensive mapping of existing professional associations, a review of the NIHOTOUR and NTDA legislative frameworks, identification of overlapping professional jurisdictions, development of national competency standards and a professional ethics framework.

He also proposed the establishment of an interim stakeholder committee, preparation of a legal and institutional feasibility report, drafting of a Chartered Institute Bill and eventual submission of the bill to the National Assembly through the appropriate legislative process.

According to him, the process should involve FTAN, NIHOTOUR, the Federal Ministry responsible for tourism, relevant government agencies, existing professional associations, universities and polytechnics, hospitality establishments, travel agencies, tour operators, hotels and resorts, destination management organisations, tourism consultants, professional practitioners, investors, labour and employer organisations, as well as consumer and civil-society organisations.

He said the proposed framework should preserve the legitimate roles and identities of existing professional bodies rather than erase their histories.

He consequently called on the Federal Government to convene a National Tourism Professional Governance Dialogue to bring the various interests in the sector to one negotiating table.

He said the dialogue should produce a roadmap for clear legislation, defined regulatory mandates, professional recognition, national competency standards, professional ethics, continuing professional development, a national professional register and recognition of existing professional bodies.

He said the ultimate goal should be to establish a modern professional governance system capable of protecting the public, supporting businesses, developing practitioners and improving the international competitiveness of Nigeria’s hospitality and tourism industry.

“The debate must no longer be about who controls tourism professionalism. It should be about how Nigeria creates a professional system that protects the public, supports businesses, develops practitioners and makes the Nigerian hospitality and tourism industry internationally competitive,” Onyeocha said.

He added: “We should not abolish professional representation; we should organise it. We should not weaken regulation; we should clarify it. We should not destroy associations; we should bring them into a coherent professional architecture.”

Onyeocha said the current dispute should ultimately serve as a catalyst for reform rather than deepen divisions in the sector.

“Let us move from institutional struggle to professional unity.

“One industry. One professional framework. Many specialisations. One national purpose.”