Alhaji Nura Kangiwa, Director-General, NIHOTOUR, disclosed this in a statement, in Lagos, through his Special Assistant, Mr Joesef Karim.
NIHOTOUR Gastronomy Festival is conceptualised to up skill
Nigerian gastronomes on nitty-gritties of the preparation and presentation of
foods, especially Nigerian traditional cuisines, with the objective of
improving the expertise of personnel in the industry.
It is empirically evident that Gastronomy is currently one
of the main tourism ‘push and pull’ factors that attract travellers to a
destination. Hence, gastronomy has become a strategic tourist product that
contributes to employment of host community’s youths and women, creation of
wealth for investors, increased revenue streams for governments, and improving
the value – chain of producing quality foods and processing the foods to hotels
and catering outlets for tourism.
This year’s event with the theme, Culinary Arts: The Gateway
to Growing Tourism Destination, is the third consecutive food and beverage
exhibition and sampling event organized yearly by NIHOTOUR, since 2021.
Due to the dearth of skilled culinary artists in Nigeria,
NIHOTOUR Gastronomy Festival provides one of the best opportunities for
hospitality and tourism stakeholders, students, and enthusiasts to have
hands-on learning and perspectives on the sustainability of developing tourism
destinations using activities of Gastronomy Festivals as promotional tools.
Also, with the preeminent of ‘Bush Meat’ hunting, using
traps, in Nigeria, which inadvertently endangers wildlife and hinders Nigeria’s
wildlife conservation efforts, the Gastronomy Festival will copiously advocate
for Responsible Tourism practises in Nigeria.
The initiative is one of the largest and most culturally
eclectic culinary arts and related gastronomy events in Africa. The event
attracts over 5000 visitors and industry stakeholders who participate in the
experiential learning of food production processes and indulge in free sampling
of diverse Nigerian and international cuisines and beverages on display.
Typically, the festival is laced with traditional gaiety and entertainments
that highlight Nigeria’s rich cultural diversity, including musicals and dance choreography.
Disclosing highlights of the 2023 Gastronomy Festival,
Director General and Chief Executive Officer of NIHOTOUR, Nura Sani Kangiwa,
said the event will feature, amongst others, exhibition of indigenous
gastronomy by prominent exhibitors such as NIHOTOUR, others, that would as
usual, showcase indigenous Nigerian cuisines from the six-geopolitical zones of
the country.
This year’s event will attract more foreign missions and
corporate Nigeria brands involved in food and beverage processing, research,
and development.
Following the successes of previous NIHOTOUR Gastronomy
Festivals, activities slated for this year’s 2-day event include Nigerian food
and beverage exhibition by NIHOTOUR and other leading restaurant franchises;
international cuisines showcasing by foreign missions in Nigeria; cooking
competition by Nigerian culinary schools, ‘Jollof War’ by select West African
chefs; and investiture of NIHOTOUR Fellowship on outstanding individuals who
have immensely contributed to the development of Hospitality and Tourism
sectors in Nigeria.
There would also be conferences involving Nigeria’s leading
tourism and hospitality stakeholders and business operators, as members of the
Hospitality and Tourism Sector Skills Council of Nigeria (HTSSCN).
Additionally, NIHOTOUR would deliver training and masterclass for members of
the Association of Nigerian Journalists and Travel Writers (ANJET).
The facilitators slated for ANJET training include Otunba
Olusegun Runsewe, the Director General of National Council for Arts and
Culture; Mr. Buky Ponle, the Managing Director of News Agency of Nigeria; and
Peter Igho, the brain behind some of the most popular programmes on Nigerian
Television Authority (NTA) that enthralled households in the 1970s and the
1990s.
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