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The Minister of Arts, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa and the Governor of Kano State, Alhaji Abba Kabir Yusuf, have both declared commitment to leveraging on tourism to grow the economy, noting its critical role as one of the key drivers of development. This resolution was made known at the ongoing 19th Annual International Conference of the Hospitality and Tourism Management Association of Nigeria (HATMAN) 2025 in Kano. The Minister, who was represented at the conference by Mr Sunday Bisong, Director of Domestic Tourism, commended HATMAN for its devotion to the development of tourism and its practices in the country. ‘‘I warmly commend the leadership and members of this Association for their unwavering commitment to advancing hospitality and tourism education, practice and policy in our country,’’ said the Musawa. Speaking on the theme of the conference, Tourism Development: Sub-sectoral Policies, Politics, and Strategies for Inclusiveness, she said, ‘‘it is most relevant. It speaks directly to the federal government’s vision of promoting inclusive growth, sustainability, and innovation in the tourism sector. ‘‘Our Ministry is committed to fostering an enabling environment where academia, practitioners, and policymakers can collaborate effectively to unlock the full potential of tourism as a driver of economic growth, cultural preservation, and national development.’’ She then urged HATMAN and the participants at the conference to use the forum to deliberate on issues and policies that would contribute significantly to making Nigeria a topmost destination in Africa. ‘‘I believe that the outcomes of your deliberations here will not only enrich the policy direction of the sector but also contribute significantly to our collective aspiration of positioning Nigeria as a foremost destination for art, culture and tourism in Africa.’’ While declaring the conference open, Kano State Governor, who was represented by the Commissioner for Tourism and Culture, Hajiya Aisha Lawal Saji, said the decision by the State government to host the conference was a reflection of its commitment to the tourism sector because of its economic importance. To this end, he said his administration is focused on the development and promotion of tourism as he highlighted some of the milestones recorded over the past two years by his administration in reviving and making functional a number of the tourism facilities and institutions across the State. He charged the conference to produce outcomes that would propel further development of the sector, noting that the gathering, ‘‘indeed, is a technical assembly of leading experts and academicians in the hospitality and tourism sector, which provides a forum to discuss and deliberate on major issues surrounding the industry and proffer meaningful recommendations to achieve desired results.’’
