The Domestic Tourism Festival (DTF) has provided emerging tourism and technology entrepreneurs with opportunities to gain practical industry knowledge, connect with stakeholders and pitch innovative ideas aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s tourism sector.
The festival, organised by Jands Travel Business School (JTBS), was held today at the Virginia Conference Centre, Independence Layout, Enugu.
Founder of Jands Travel Business School, Mrs Chioma Obi, said the festival was designed to complement tourism training with practical opportunities for young people seeking to build careers and businesses in the sector.
According to Obi, participants were exposed to masterclasses, while emerging tourism and technology entrepreneurs were given opportunities to pitch their ideas, engage with industry professionals and explore potential partnerships.
She said the initiative was inspired by JTBS’s experience in training people interested in the travel and tourism industry, noting that classroom training alone was not enough to prepare emerging professionals for the realities of the market.
Obi explained that young professionals also needed opportunities to meet industry players, showcase their ideas, understand the market, engage with government institutions and connect with potential business partners.
She said the festival was also designed to address the low level of domestic travel in Nigeria by connecting destinations, businesses, communities and technology.
“Nigeria has everything it takes to have a thriving tourism industry, but we are not travelling enough within our own country,” she said.
Obi noted that Nigeria has diverse destinations, cuisines, cultures, festivals, history, art and creative talent, but many Nigerians remain more familiar with destinations outside the country than attractions within Nigeria.
She said increased domestic travel would create economic opportunities across the tourism value chain, benefiting hotels, restaurants, transport operators, tour guides, artisans, photographers, creatives and technology entrepreneurs.
“Domestic tourism is not just about telling Nigerians to ‘visit Nigeria’. It is about keeping economic value moving within our communities,” she said.
The festival brought together tourism professionals, government representatives, academics, young entrepreneurs, technology innovators, hospitality businesses, creatives, cultural institutions, investors and members of the public.
Obi identified collaboration as another critical area the festival seeks to strengthen, noting that the different components of the tourism value chain depend on one another.
She said the festival deliberately focused on young people because opportunities in tourism extend beyond traditional careers in hotels and airline ticketing to areas such as destination management, technology, content creation, events, transportation, hospitality, culture, food, entertainment and tourism entrepreneurship.
The programme featured masterclasses, exhibitions, cultural showcases, heritage experiences, an Enugu city tour, local cuisine and the Travel Tech Pitch Competition.
Obi said the organisers also wanted participants to experience tourism rather than simply listen to presentations about it, adding that the activities were designed to showcase Enugu and encourage Nigerians to discover destinations within the country.
She said the long-term vision of DTF was to make domestic tourism an activity Nigerians actively participate in, invest in and earn from, while ensuring that communities and businesses benefit from the movement of visitors.
“If we can get more Nigerians travelling locally, more businesses participating, more young people building careers around tourism, more communities benefiting from visitors and more technology being applied to tourism, then we are not simply organising an event. We are helping to build a tourism ecosystem,” Obi said.
