Hello everyone visiting today as i launch my Blog – hospitalityandmsb (for short H & M), on a day that is a significant one in my life. This is because it marks two dates, one is it is the birthday of a late loved one, and it is the Immaculate Conception a significant feast to me and I am aware many! These two persons I dedicate this blog, as they have a SPECIAL place in my heart. That said, besides my passion for all things above. I am passionate about God as FIRST reference point. Passionate about Women, the girl-child, youths, hospitality, tourism, agriculture, and all that links with HOSPITALITY, added to these i am PASSIONATE about NIJA!, our great GOD given country with all its untapped potentials, and despite ANYTHING happening that wants to dampen our spirits in this moment of change we are passing!

Now my 10 Point first Story: Point 1- I am delighted to be launching this blog today to create a platform, were I can talk, form professional RELATIONSHIPS, and interact with lots of you that decide to ‘TURN UP’ here! I wish to hopefully highlight issues, events ,and all that relate to an industry I believe many of you out there are passionate to see further grow, create wealth for our country, and Jobs for our teeming youths. Thus, I dare to ask “ Is there any part of our lives that in one way or another hospitality services doesn’t have an impact ?” housekeeping, culinary chaos, events, special occasions, etc thus, I hope to talk, bring on board , with ALL YOUR INSPIRATIONAL comments many –‘juicy’, inspiring, impacting, questioning, puzzling, dynamic, refreshing, motivating, yet to discover ENDLESS adjectives to describe issues and topics, linked to this remarkable industry that is a catalyst and engine for growth, wealth creation and economic diversification, along with Tourism and Leisure!

Point 2- As i unfold this blog platform I ask you FAMILY, FAMILIES, friends, students, operators -domestic and international in the industry, colleagues, passionately filled lovers of hospitality, leisure and tourism stakeholders to on this day COMMENT about any hospitality service experience that surprised you with perhaps a WOW moment in your life or for your event, to mark this launching day. To share with the audience here some of the IMPORTANT part hospitality services play in our lives, and also share thoughts on any significant ‘touch’ you think it contributes to ALL OUR SPECIAL moments or event at one time or the other- anniversaries, birthdays, etc


 Point 3- I am also delighted to launch this platform when many events as we look forward to Christmas are happening in Nigeria. Some of which year in year out are significant tourist events that attract both domestic and international travellers/tourists, business people, etc. You may agree with me if I say one of such event is the CALABAR CARNIVAL! The one I have set my heart on as the theme to tell my STORY today! I will tell this story, and promise to only mortify you this one day and make you endure such a LONG story as this, on this first day,to help tell my STORY fully, and begin my CONVERSATION on this platform. Thereafter I will always keep it short!

Point 4- I am not an indigene of Calabar nor have I been to the calabar carnival. I tell my story from a hospitality perspective, an industry that is my Professional field, in which I also educate and train its most important asset-People. And also because of having recently again heard about the past activities of this carnival from Sir Gabe Onah,the Chairman Cross river state Tourism commission, recently at the Nigeria Hotel and Tourism Investment conference at the Intercontinental Hotel, Lagos 25th- 27th November. This made my heart ‘BLEED’ realising that enough cannot be said to analyze, recognize, understand and inform Mr. President, Public and government, and all stakeholders about the HUGE number of tourist destinations and products that exist in this country! Cultural heritage and sites that can contribute to the economy of this country as a whole, linked to the hospitality and tourism industry that is IGNORED! Calabar carnival activities, now included, as I was firmly CONVINCED at the above conference, in which I sadly saw NO GOVERNMENT official representative was present, for some reasons, i can't verify, i got to hear that I am not proud to mention on this platform. Thus, I venture to use this carnival as a sample study to analyze and drive home some points if they will be noticed. Thus, @ H & M i attempt to do part of such an analysis as I tell my story!


Point 5- Let’s talk CALABAR and let your Imagination go wild thinking along with me. Perhaps you may never have wondered what plans in general, or security plans in particular need to be put in place, to receive all the range of visitors that will have entered or still yet to enter calabar this December carnival to create a seamless experience year in year out! In addition, you may not have thought of the number of people that will be arriving from various destinations and countries to the carnival venue. Besides this, there will need to be plans to sustain their stay, and also plans to make them leave with a final lasting impression of calabar. This can be a good, bad or negative impression depending on how it is managed, organised or what is delivered or influenced by other tangibles or intangible products or impressions, linked to the product being sold. In this case our product is the- CALABAR CARNIVAL.

Point 6- I speak first and foremost with all due respect about this to his Excellency-President  Mohammadu Buhari, those in the new formed ministry, I stand to be corrected, I was informed ‘house’ Tourism –Ministry of Trade and Investment, before then, I thought it was ‘housed’ by the Ministry of Information and Culture. I speak also to those in charge of security in Nigeria, about Calabar as a case study,and as we struggle also to collect back looted funds, etc This is because I want to dare to say that HOSPITALITY and TOURISM in less than one year with the NEEDED POLITICAL WILL put to WORK, such a WILL can make these industries start generating FRESH FUNDS for Nigeria and Nigerians, while Mr. President continues to collect back those taken, by unconcerned ‘hands’ that took what belongs to all, for the common good, to put things mildly. Such that when these looted funds are recovered they will then become what I chose to describe as ‘EXTRA POCKET MONEY’ for the country’s development that it has been deprived of before now.


 Point 7- For analysis sake and want of exact fact calabar has hosted before now up to 1.2 million tourists/travellers in the same spot, participating in its carnival. Therefore obviously needless to say is the fact that a recognised and thought through security plan year in year out is put in place, based on past experiences, and it must probably go through a consistent developmental process. Thus, at this point a question that could be asked is why can’t the same strategy be used to put in place security, for the estimate I recently saw of 181.1 million Nigerian across the 36 states? Is rocket science required? Or is the POLITICAL WILL lacking or the KNOW HOW unknown?

Now if we look at the area of finance during this carnival for the whole six or I heard 32 days? in which this carnival will take place. A similar amount of thought/plan must go into ensuring for instance that a required number of ATM machines or financial systems or operations or halls are in place RUNNING efficiently to facilitate tourist monetary transactions. Can such a template be applied to bigger situations? or is rocket science also required?

 Then if we look at hotel rooms as well this same estimated number of people year in year out that book and stay in hotels in calabar can also be used to forecast the possible number of rooms to establish in place to invest in hotel rooms!






Now, if will talk about food and beverage- with COKE a well known beverage brand as a sample, if COKE decides to have a stand at the carnival. This company can amazingly also from statistics over the years from this carnival, if available, estimate the number of coke bottles, it will make sure it supplies for sale at the venue of the carnival. Of course that is if coke is serious minded about truly selling a huge number of coke bottles not some order plan only known to them.  

 Point 8 -Thus, what story am I telling with all this so far? It is that if all these and more is possible to forecast and estimate. Why not our local, state, national, federal- security, water, road network, power, etc by all the related ministries linked to them? Do we need rocket science I still ask? I appeal to Mr. President and the ministries linked to these areas as one more, concerned and passionate citizen about Nigeria and the potentials of these industries, that I have mentioned above. I appeal along with others that there be please put in place using the political WILL required, an enabling environment to develop these industries so it can cater for the teeming masses and youths, in this country, and I appeal also for the sake of those below the ‘Pyramid’ as described and recently clamoured by Professor Pat Utomi, besides yearly as he does in a range of ways, through his involvement in lots of initiatives and articles he writes. One of which I read recently in the Newswatch Times  titled -'Educating the bottom of the Pyramid' to reduce inequality. I want to believe that many Nigerian citizens, wish to see effort made to impact the change we daily HOPE to see become a reality, as we continue hearing all sorts of ‘human omissions’, to put it mildly that have left GRAVE consequences, on our country’s economy.


Point 9- Besides this, I cannot analyse Calabar enough as a case study. From a CORE hospitality and tourism stand point it is a HUGE source of revenue for the state, and the hospitality and tourism industry. I will attempt to show the areas in which this ability to generate huge revenue exist not FULLY REALISED, that if left alone represents a COUNTRY’S LOSS, I do that in a summarised form with bullet points, in my already long STORY below.

I will do this by using two types of tourist coming to CALABAR CARNIVAL as an example. One of these a domestic tourist, the other an International tourist, by assuming they both need to leave their homes, by one form of transportation or another that exist.Since it is known that Tourism is the movement of people away from home.

 Thus, - to begin our international tourist will need a visa ( hopefully he will get this with out going through a tough time in the Nigerian embassy wherever! )

- Perhaps they both will need a cab from their different home to an airport or bus park. This establishes that they both need some form of transportation  to move

- before departing from their homes in advance one of them or both may book a flight with aero, Fresh, Dana, virgin atlantic, Virgin Nigeria, etc

 - on landing one or both may need to eat or drink to refresh self - on landing one or both may need conveniences
 - on landing one or both may have forgotten one or two toiletries and wish to purchase some
- after this the next thing may be likely one or both may need accommodation, if not booked in advance
 - in the accommodation chosen food and drink is still required by both for all the days of stay-in
- While in their hotel rooms both samples of guests/tourist coming to the carnival may have prepared to get involved in a range of entertainment that will be separately paid for to attend.
 - These two tourist may also require transportation to known hotels and sites at an affordable not extorted price
 - both tourist while on the carnival routes may have a need for food and drink refreshment - both tourist may need POS facilities for monetary transactions
- both may need communication outlets/facilities to get to loved ones and friends at home to communicate their arrival and experiences
- these two tourist type at the event may have a need for pharmaceutical or medical attention such as pain killers, digestive aids, energy boosters, doctors, nurses,etc as the case may be
 - these tourists may be interested in visiting sites - these tourists may be interested in going to the cinema
- these tourists may be interested in souvenirs 
- these tourists may be interested to attend side shows by D’banj, Nice, 2face, Ty savage,etc 
- These tourists may love to eat in a quick service or fine dining restaurant for their meals!
-etc,etc,etc as in THE KING & I !


 My dear readers those of you who  have PERSEVERED to this stage of my LENGTHY story, Pardon me and THANK YOU for your time spent here. I can add and add to this list. But the point I am trying to make I hope you have followed is for MR. PRESIDENT and all those passionate about DIVERSIFICATION, ECOMONY GROWTH, JOB CREATION, WEALTH CREATION, OUR YOUTHS, and NIGERIA’s ECONOMY! to notice that EACH of my bullet points above represent a HUGE means of REVENUE GENERATION that EYES are CLOSED to presently not just for only CALABAR CARNIVAL destination. These are investment points that can surely bring SURE dividends on a short term!


MY story I have also chosen to tell because for every POTENTIAL undeveloped fully, present 70 tourist destinations, which I am aware a list as these exist on the website of HATMAN (Hospitality and tourism association Management association of Nigeria).In such a list or similar, any undeveloped site represents what NIGERIA is LOSING, not developing them FAST, these tourist destination whether–Man-made and Natural ones.



Point 10- My story is also trying to make also the fact known that this carnival holding and attracting tourist as a STAND ALONE- tourist destination already shows it is a SAMPLE of a tourism product  can generate in monetary terms, even if some amount of money many need to be invested to make it a lucrative tourism product. This will be money invested that for sure will bring SURE GAINS, recovered from sales, etc, without Mr. President and all Ministries concerned THINKING or having to say or worry that if they invest HUGE amount on certain facilities or road network to such potential tourist sites. It will be money invested and with a potential to be realised back not like we see invested many times in  ‘mushroom projects’ of of which are never completed or abandoned. I dare to say that even if it could be said that money is not available to invest in them, there exist MANY INNOVATIVE WAYS to suggest to Mr. President, and all that love this country,so as to help to generate needed funds that will be required in will be  surprising SUCCESS , when the right interested parties to create a public-private partnership are encouraged and convinced to get involved.

Dear Mr. President and readers my bullet points also above in my story are LINES that point to the boundless avenues for job and wealth creations that can be further listed, that need harnessing. I will in my next blog STORY look at proposals of innovative ways of raising funds to develop and promote the cultural heritage we have in abundance that lie fallow representing loses, and hopefully look at other perspective of CALABAR CARNIVAL as a destination named  that has also been named I have noted -African’s biggest street party.I reserve my comment!

 I cannot finish without thanking you ALL for your time this far, and ask you to please post in ALL YOUR comments, remarks and sincere feedback. I look forward to reading them ALL.

A big THANK YOU also on this day to a GREAT friend SELE, for starting that TAXI PARK conversation that was convincing enough to begin a DREAM, AN IDEA! I will live him behind the scene for now until he gives me permission to do otherwise. Meanwhile dear readers keep reading and posting your comment here Happy reading!
@ H & M!