IN a bid to reduce criminality in the Nigerian hospitality industry and the nation at large and elicit confidence and trust in tourists to the country, the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) has partnered with the International Criminal Police (INTERPOL).
The Director-General of the Corporation (NTDC), Dr. Paul Adalikwu, said the partnership with INTERPOL will check criminality and ensure good security in Nigeria.
Adalikwu, who said this on Friday, when the INTERPOL Nigeria team paid him a courtesy visit in his office, in Abuja, added that the partnership with the world’s largest security organization, with 190 member countries, would project Nigeria as a security conscious nation and a preferred tourist destination of choice.
He described the partnership between the Corporation and INTERPOL as a welcome idea and one of the cardinal objectives of the President Buhari led-administration, to elicit confidence and trust in tourists who visit the country, whilst creating an enabling environment for hospitality businesses to grow.
He also assured the INTERPOL of the Corporation’s commendation and willingness to partner with it in the newly launched All Travellers Information System (ATIS), saying, “the system is quite commendable, because it will go a long way in sanitizing the Nigerian hospitality industry, particularly as it affects hotels and other related businesses.”
The Commissioner of Police, Olushola Subair, who led the INTERPOL team, earlier in his speech, disclosed the intention of the agency to make Nigeria considerably crime free and a safe haven.
“We are here for a good partnership with NTDC, which deals with tourists, travel and hospitality industries, to ensure Nigeria is safe, with extremely low level of criminality,” Subair said.